Financial holding companies in South Korea are expected to perform the worst this year since the 2008 global financial crisis, dented by the low-rate policy and corporate defaults, the financial regulator said Tuesday.

Twelve banking groups, including No. 1 player Woori Finance Holdings Co., are estimated to log a combined net profit of 7.3 trillion won ($6.56 billion) in 2013, down 25.5 percent from the previous year, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.

The forecast will mark the lowest in the last five years, the FSS said. They saw their combined net income tumble to 3.56 trillion won and 3.59 trillion won in 2008 and 2009, respectively, in the wake of Lehman Brothers collapse.

A year later, their combined net income doubled, before reaching a record 12.8 trillion won in 2011, on the back of aggressive expansion and favorable market conditions, the data showed.

The dim outlook for this year came as banking firms have seen their interest income slide due to the central bank’s easing cycle.

The Bank of Korea has cut the key rate three times since July last year to 2.5 percent to prop up the slowing economy. (Yonhap News)