JB Financial Group is expanding its overseas business territory to Central Asia, following Southeast Asia. The region chosen as a base is Kyrgyzstan, which is considered a blue ocean market within Central Asia. Among domestic financial holding companies, this marks the second entry into Kyrgyzstan after BNK Financial Group. The group aims to target the Central Asian market based on its expertise in auto finance.
JB Financial subsidiary JB Woori Capital signed an agreement on the 22nd to acquire a 100% stake in Epoke JSC, the parent company of Kyrgyz financial firms Korkik Credit and Korki Leasing. The acquisition amount is valued at 17.7 billion won.
JB Woori Capital plans to complete the acquisition within the year after going through local regulatory approval and registration procedures. Once these procedures are completed, Korkik Credit and Korki Leasing will be incorporated as 100% subsidiaries of JB Woori Capital.
JB Financial aims to quickly establish a foothold in the local market based on its capabilities accumulated in the domestic auto finance sector. In the medium to long term, the group plans to strengthen its position in the local market by diversifying its revenue base.
The decision for JB Financial to make Kyrgyzstan a new base was driven by the judgment that there is an opportunity to secure a first-mover advantage in the market, as domestic financial companies have relatively few entries into Central Asia. Previously, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan were recognized as beachheads for domestic financial companies entering Central Asia. Shinhan Financial operates Shinhan Kazakhstan Bank (bank) and Shinhan Finance (card) in Kazakhstan and is pushing to establish a local bank subsidiary in Uzbekistan. Hana Financial Group has also applied for approval to establish a local subsidiary of Hana Bank in Uzbekistan. BNK Financial maintains a bank and a capital company in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, respectively.
In contrast, among domestic financial holding companies, BNK Financial was the only one with an entry into Kyrgyzstan. Previously, BNK Capital, a BNK Financial affiliate, established a local subsidiary in Kyrgyzstan in 2022, planting its first flag there. As for individual financial companies outside of bank-affiliated holding groups, BC Card established a joint venture specializing in card payment processing with a local payment company in 2023.
Kyrgyzstan is evaluated as a market with high growth potential within Central Asia, with those aged 30 and under accounting for approximately 70% of the total population and real GDP growth rates recently exceeding 10% annually.
Once this acquisition is completed, JB Financial’s number of overseas subsidiaries will increase to five. Currently, JB Financial operates a commercial bank in Cambodia, a microfinance company in Myanmar, a securities firm in Vietnam, and a specialized credit finance company in Indonesia.
A JB Financial official stated, “This acquisition is a strategic decision to expand our financial network from Southeast Asia to Central Asia,” adding, “Based on the auto finance competitiveness held by JB Woori Capital and a thorough localization strategy, we will successfully establish ourselves in the Kyrgyzstan market and build a foundation for sustainable growth.”
in FINANCE
