Kookmin Bank

Strong market position as one of the largest banks in Korea. Strong retail banking business. Adequate capitalization. Potential pressure on asset quality from high household leverage in Korea. Moderate profitability compared with regional and global peers. The stable outlook on Kookmin Bank reflects our view that the bank will maintain its adequate capitalization backed by moderate growth appetite despite some pressure on profitability over the next 18-24 months. We believe Kookmin will be able to manage an upward pressure on asset quality and credit costs stemming from the economic slowdown caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. This is based on the bank's efforts over the past several years to tighten underwriting standards, write off bad loans, and build in additional provisioning

...Outlook: Stable The stable outlook on Kookmin Bank reflects our view that the bank will maintain its adequate capitalization backed by moderate growth appetite despite some pressure on profitability over the next 18-24 months. We believe Kookmin will be able to manage an upward pressure on asset quality and credit costs stemming from the economic slowdown caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. This is based on the bank's efforts over the past several years to tighten underwriting standards, write off bad loans, and build in additional provisioning for weak corporate sectors. We anticipate a recovery of the economy from 2021 onwards supported by a rebound of global demand and the government's fiscal stimulus and market-stabilization measures in response to the pandemic. In addition, we expect Kookmin to maintain its stable funding and liquidity profile backed by its solid nationwide customer base....

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