Hanwha Life enters Indonesian banking sector, expanding presence as a global integrated financial company

Hanwha Life has announced that the agenda “Approval of Investment in Indonesian Financial Company” passed at an extraordinary board meeting held on April 23. The main content of the agenda was the investment of a total of 40.0% of the shares in Nobu Bank, which is held by Indonesia’s Lippo Group.

This share investment initiative is part of Hanwha Life’s plan to make the leap from life and general insurance business to banking in Indonesia, becoming a global integrated financial group. It also plans to use Indonesia, with its growing economy and population, as a major base for expanding into the Southeast Asian market.

Founded in 1990, Nobu Bank is a mid-sized local bank, ranking within the top 30 in Indonesia by assets excluding state and regionally owned banks, which totaled 2.3 trillion won as of the end of 2023. It is part of Lippo Group, the sixth largest conglomerate in Indonesia, which operates in various business areas including finance, real estate, and retail, and has strong brand recognition locally.

The bank operates in 119 locations (113 branches, head offices and sales centers) and employs more than 1,200 staff (as of 2023), specializing in personal mortgage loans and working capital loans for small and medium enterprises. Based on strong branch operations, it maintained excellent capital strength and robust growth even during the pandemic.

Going forward, Hanwha Life plans to quickly implement the digital and mobile experience possessed by Hanwha Life and its financial affiliates. By integrating this with Lippo Group’s banking management expertise, it aims to establish itself in the market swiftly. This will involve creating a hybrid channel that enhances traditional in-person channels with digital banking, expanding a mobile-based business environment.

Additionally, synergies are expected from the sales of life insurance products through Hanwha Life Indonesia and general insurance products through Lippo General Insurance, whose stakes were invested in March last year, utilizing the two companies’ bancassurance relationship.

Through the partnership with Lippo Group, the plan is to actively leverage the local brand awareness and influence of Lippo Group, as well as its ecosystem of affiliates, employees, supply chains, and customers to further solidify its customer base.

“Hanwha Life already maintains a leading position in the domestic market through proactive management, but to overcome the limitations of the domestic market and ensure continuous growth, accelerating our global strategy is essential,” stated Seung-Joo Yeo, Vice Chairman and CEO of Hanwha Life. “Through this investment in Nobu Bank, we expect to make the leap into becoming a global integrated financial group and foresee Indonesia becoming a key hub in our strategy to expand into the Southeast Asian market.”

The share investment process will be finalized after the signing of the contract between the two companies and the approval of the regulatory authorities in both countries.