KakaoBank Corp. Lowers Financial Barriers for '2.2 Million' Foreign Residents

[Financial News] KakaoBank Corp. has launched a comprehensive financial service targeting 2.2 million foreign residents in South Korea. Foreign nationals can now easily open accounts without visiting a branch and use a single app for services ranging from card issuance to international remittances.
On the 12th, KakaoBank Corp. held a press conference on its services for foreign nationals in Jung District, Seoul, and unveiled new offerings including the Foreign Residents Account, the Friends Check Card and international remittances.
The Foreign Residents Account is for foreign nationals aged 19 or older from some 200 nationalities worldwide. The application process uses a chatbot, allowing customers to open an account in about five minutes if no additional screening is required.
Customers can submit required documents, such as proof of employment, through the app. KakaoBank Corp. has also simplified identity verification using selfie authentication for foreign nationals and public MyData. Customers can obtain documents needed to extend their visas or check their won balances converted into nine currencies.
Transfer and automated teller machine (ATM) fees are waived unconditionally. Customers can also use group accounts and Safe Box, and open up to two accounts per person.
Foreign customers can also get a Friends Check Card, which offers the same cashback benefits as those available to domestic customers. KakaoBank Corp. will launch a card for overseas payments at the end of the year. It will also support credit card applications and offer a service for comparing the benefits of different cards.
In partnership with Hanpass, KakaoBank Corp. supports international remittances to around 200 countries in some 50 currencies. Remittance fees for major destinations, including the United States and China, are free, and fees for receiving international remittances are also waived unconditionally.
KakaoBank Corp. offers the app in English, Chinese and Vietnamese, and provides one-on-one consultations in English. It has introduced facial authentication for foreign nationals and abnormal transaction detection, and customers can also use AI search, AI transfers and a service for checking smishing text messages.
Next year, KakaoBank Corp. plans to increase the number of languages supported by the app to seven and add savings and time deposit products, open banking and loan-comparison services. In the long term, it plans to expand its customer base to include foreign visitors to Korea and Korean nationals living overseas.
Bae Jeong-ho, head of KakaoBank Corp.'s Foreign Customer Camp, said, “We hope KakaoBank will become ‘the new standard in Korean finance’ for long-term foreign residents who live in Korea for study or work,” adding, “We will continue to steadily expand our product portfolio and become the financial platform most sought after by foreign nationals.”

[email protected] Seo Ji-yoon Reporter