Shinhan Bank will continue managing Incheon City’s first treasury, which holds a total of 17 trillion won, for another four years. It successfully retained the position by defeating Hana Bank, which challenged with its group's relocation to Cheongna.
According to financial sector sources on the 17th, Incheon Metropolitan City selected Shinhan Bank as the first treasury and NH NongHyup Bank as the second treasury among financial institutions eligible for the next term. The two banks will manage Incheon City’s finances from 2027 through 2030, a four-year period.
The general account, special accounts for public corporations, and funds managed by the first treasury are estimated at 15 trillion won. Based on the main budget, this includes 13 trillion 306.1 billion won from the general account and special accounts for public corporations, plus an annual fund management scale of 2.5 trillion won. The second treasury covers other special accounts with a scale of 2 trillion 198 billion won.
Incheon City’s treasury selection was considered one of the most intense battlegrounds for institutional investor operations in the second half of this year. Notably, while only NH NongHyup Bank submitted a bid for the second treasury, the first treasury drew attention as a fierce contest between Shinhan Bank, which has served as treasurer for 20 years, and new challenger Hana Bank.
Managing the city treasury offers the advantage of acquiring massive institutional investor funds at low cost. Budgets and operating funds from local governments, along with various funds, flow into the designated bank. This allows the bank to reduce funding costs and enhance competitiveness. Additionally, holding the title of city treasury management bank provides a strategic advantage in retail operations within the region.
Shinhan Bank inherited the treasury role from Hanmi Bank, which had exclusively managed Incheon City’s treasury for a long period, and has been operating the first treasury since 2007. By retaining the Incheon City treasury, Shinhan Bank secured consecutive wins following its victories in Seoul City’s first and second treasuries in the first half of the year, further proving its strength as a leader in institutional investor operations.
Although competitor Hana Bank actively promoted its contributions to the regional economy and mutual growth by relocating its headquarters and 10 group companies to Cheongna alongside its holding company, analysis suggests that Incheon City placed greater emphasis on financial management stability and awarded high marks to Shinhan Bank for its long-term stable management of the treasury.
Notably, despite an emergency situation arising from the simultaneous transition of a large-scale local government computer network following Incheon City’s administrative restructuring last month, Shinhan Bank successfully completed the process without any errors through a 24-hour collaborative system. Additionally, through the startup incubation platform 'Shinhan Square Bridge Incheon,' it supported 352 companies up to last year, achieving results in job retention and creation of 6,393 positions and attracting investments totaling 429.8 billion won.
Furthermore, within the financial sector, there is an interpretation that since the schedule for selecting Incheon City’s treasury was somewhat delayed, reappointing the existing managing bank helped enhance stability in financial management.
A Shinhan Bank official stated, "Based on our accumulated experience in stable treasury management and top-tier financial capabilities, we will strive to further improve financial convenience for Incheon citizens." He added, "We will do our utmost to continue contributing to Incheon’s economic growth and regional development."
in FINANCE
