Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. becomes the first Korean financial group to establish a financial holding company in Indonesia

[Financial News] Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. has become the first Korean financial group to launch a local financial holding company in Indonesia. 
According to financial industry sources on the 13th, Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. converted Shinhan Indonesia Bank into a business holding company that performs the functions of a financial holding company and launched the Shinhan Indonesia Financial Group.
In December 2024, after Indonesia’s financial authorities made the establishment of financial holding companies mandatory, Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. began restructuring its local governance. After receiving approval from the local financial authorities last September, it carried out follow-up procedures, including transferring shares, and completed the conversion on the 16th of last month in close cooperation with the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Indonesia and the Korea-ASEAN Financial Cooperation Center.
As part of the restructuring, Shinhan Indonesia Bank purchased portions of the stakes in its local subsidiaries Shinhan Indo Finance and Shinhan Investment & Securities Indonesia held by Shinhan Card and Shinhan Investment & Securities, respectively. As a result, it secured a 50% stake plus one share in each of the two companies.
Over the past decade or so, Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. has expanded its business base in Indonesia and grown into a comprehensive financial group with about 900 employees. It plans to use the conversion to a holding company as an opportunity to strengthen cooperation among its affiliates and improve the efficiency of management decision-making.
Jin Ok-dong, chairman of Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd., and key officials from local financial authorities attended the launch ceremony for the Shinhan Indonesia Financial Group, held in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the 12th. That day, Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. also signed a memorandum of understanding with Sinar Mas, Indonesia’s fourth-largest business group. The move is part of its efforts to diversify its business in line with the launch of the local financial holding company. The two groups plan to expand cooperation in corporate finance and supply chain finance. In particular, Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd. plans to combine its financial capabilities with Sinar Mas’s local industrial network to explore new growth opportunities.
Jin Ok-dong, chairman of Shinhan Financial Group Co., Ltd., said, “The launch of the financial holding company has given us a foundation to operate our businesses in Indonesia under a single system, making this MOU a new effort to expand our local business. Through this, we will work with Sinar Mas to provide local customers with differentiated financial value and contribute to the economic development of both countries.”

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