[비즈한국] Welcome Savings Bank is accelerating its transition into an 'AI Bank' by launching an AI financial assistant and launching new brand campaigns. With Son Dae-hee (43), the eldest son of Welcome Financial Group Chairman Son Jong-joo (71), taking over as CEO to lead strategy and retail banking, second-generation management is in full swing. Attention is now focused on whether this AI-centric strategy will lead to earnings improvement and business restructuring.
Welcome Savings Bank is speeding up its shift to an AI bank. On May 27, the bank filed for two logos using the taglines "Welcome to AI" and "AI First For you" through its affiliate, Welcome Credit Line. Having had a similar application rejected in October 2025, it re-filed with a different applicant. Currently, the bank uses "Welcome Digital Bank" as its tagline, and whether it will adopt a new one remains to be seen.
In March, Welcome Savings Bank became the first in the industry to launch an AI financial assistant called "Welsa." As a generative AI-based service, Welsa performs financial tasks like transfers and account inquiries based on voice or text commands. Accordingly, since April, the bank has been running an AI banking campaign in partnership with former professional Go player Lee Sedol, who serves as a distinguished professor at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST). The campaign also features the new slogan: "Welcome to AI Welcome Savings Bank, moving beyond digital banking to AI financial services."
Recently, the bank also opened an AI experience center. On June 2, it relocated its Bundang branch to a new location near Sunae Station, incorporating an AI financial assistant experience zone. The Bundang-Sunae Station branch is one of the eight branches in the Gyeonggi southern region. The opening ceremony was attended by Welcome Financial Group Chairman Son Jong-joo, Vice Chairman Kim Dae-woong, and co-CEOs Park Jong-sung and Son Dae-hee.
The AI transition is coinciding with the full-scale transition to second-generation management. On March 31, the bank appointed Vice President Park Jong-sung (61) and Welcome F&D CEO Son Dae-hee as new co-CEOs. CEO Son, the eldest son of founder Son Jong-joo, leads strategy, support, and retail banking at Welcome Savings Bank. He is also spearheading the bank's AI advancement and new business strategies.
In their inaugural remarks, CEOs Park Jong-sung and Son Dae-hee stated, "Welcome Savings Bank has grown into a leading bank in the industry through its unparalleled digital financial capabilities. As AI-driven changes occur in all areas of society, the economy, and finance, we will seize these changes as an opportunity to leap forward again through digital and AI."
Attention is also focused on whether strategic shifts, such as the push for AI banking, will lead to profitability improvements. In 2025, Welcome Savings Bank saw its net profit drop significantly (from 43.26 billion won to 6.3 billion won) as it increased loan loss provisions (from 432.6 billion won to 549.3 billion won). Notably, it posted a net loss of 46 billion won in the fourth quarter of 2025, turning into the red. Given that net profit has been on a downward trend every year even before accounting for provisions, an earnings rebound is urgent.
In the first quarter of this year, the bank succeeded in improving its performance. Welcome Savings Bank's net profit for Q1 2026 reached 45.2 billion won, a 248% increase compared to the same period last year (13 billion won). This improvement was largely due to reduced costs. Losses related to loans decreased from 53 billion won in Q1 2025 to 19.1 billion won in Q1 2026, and interest expenses also fell from 42.4 billion won to 34 billion won during the same period.
However, some point out that interest income from the core business has decreased, signaling a need to strengthen fundamentals. Interest income for Q1 2026 was 130.4 billion won, a 4.0% decrease from the same period last year (135.8 billion won). Instead, income from securities (up from 3.7 billion won to 8.8 billion won), commission income (up from 4.2 billion won to 5.9 billion won), and dividend income (up from 0.9 billion won to 2.7 billion won) increased, bringing total operating revenue from 151.9 billion won to 155.5 billion won. The number of active customers also continued to grow, reaching 973,248 in Q1 2026, a 4.7% increase from the same period last year (929,306), and a slight increase from 972,000 at the end of 2025.
As the report card for second-generation management begins from Q2 2026, eyes are on the bank's future performance and business restructuring. CEO Park Jong-sung, an expert in the IB field who managed corporate and investment banking at IBK Capital, joins CEO Son Dae-hee, who has served in major affiliates like Welcome Capital and Welcome F&D, to divide roles between retail banking and digital strategy. Under the co-CEO structure, the bank appears to be pursuing both stable profit enhancement and the securing of new growth drivers.
Whether the bank can maintain its industry ranking is also of interest. In the savings bank industry, the top four firms account for over 70% of total industry profit, and there is a wide gap even within that group. Korea Investment Savings Bank and OK Savings Bank lead the top two, while SBI Savings Bank and Welcome Savings Bank compete for the third and fourth spots. In Q1 of this year, with SBI Savings Bank's net profit limited to 15.4 billion won, Welcome Savings Bank secured the third spot. First place went to Korea Investment Savings Bank with 98 billion won in net profit, and second place went to OK Savings Bank with 82 billion won.
Ahn Tae-young, a lead researcher at Korea Investors Service, analyzed, "Welcome Savings Bank has an excellent market position, but its size has shrunk significantly due to the deterioration of the business environment in 2023 and strengthened risk management. The bank will likely continue conservative growth by selectively handling loans centered on high-quality borrowers."