Yang Jong-hee, Chairman of KB Financial: "AI Transformation is an Opportunity... Insight into the Essence of Finance Needed"

[Financial News] Yang Jong-hee, Chairman of KB Financial Holdings, emphasized to employees that "the era of artificial intelligence (AI) transformation is both a crisis and a new opportunity for KB Financial to increase added value," stressing the importance of customer-centric philosophy and insight into the essence of finance. 
According to KB Financial on the 13th, Chairman Yang emphasized this at the '2025 second half group executive workshop' held on the 11th and 12th. 
In particular, Chairman Yang said, "It is our duty to enrich customers. We must strive to ensure that KB is always present in customers' lives to help them," and urged "to promote structural changes in all areas, including customer-centric sales methods, customer management systems, products, and services." 
This workshop was conducted under the theme of 'KB Financial Group's Level-Up Strategy in the New Financial Environment.' More than 270 executives from KB Financial affiliates attended to discuss the group's sustainable growth strategy centered on the four agendas of customer, efficiency, AI, and inclusion.
In the customer session, time was shared to explore customer strategies and business model transition plans from a group perspective, not from an individual affiliate perspective, by sharing the perspectives of external experts and internal executives. A group-wide strategy was established for customer groups emerging as key customer bases, such as senior customers. In the efficiency session, the holding company's Chief Financial Officer (CFO) shared a growth strategy considering capital efficiency that can solidify market leadership by presenting first-half management performance and second-half plans to establish a sustainable growth foundation.
In the AI session, the heads of Financial AI Centers 1 and 2 presented the group's AI agent development and practical application status and discussed future implementation plans and change management strategies. KB Financial plans to gradually introduce AI agents across the entire headquarters sales and management areas, starting with Private Banker (PB) agents and Corporate Finance Expert (RM) agents. The goal is to establish an organizational culture where all employees use AI as a practical work partner.
In the final session, a group-level execution strategy for strengthening inclusive finance was shared. Executives from each affiliate, including KB Kookmin Bank, which recently established an Inclusive Finance Department, shared the group's inclusive finance strategy and derived affiliate-specific execution plans.
A KB Financial official said, "This workshop will accelerate the structural innovation of group business and AI transformation," and "as a leading financial group, we will do our best to faithfully fulfill our social role and meet the expectations of the market and investors."

zoom@fnnews.com Lee Jumi Reporter