Kookmin Bank, South Korea's biggest retail bank, is expected to post a handsome profit for the third quarter to September despite the fallout from its accounting scandal, its outgoing president said Friday.
"The bank is expected to post a net profit for the third quarter which is almost similar in size to the overall total for the first two quarters," Kookmin Bank president Kim Jung-Tae said.
"There has also been improvement in various indicators for its financial health," said Kim, who is to bow out at the end of this month, in his last monthly speech to employees.
In the first half to June, the nation's biggest lender posted a net profit of 307 billion won (267 million dollars).
The bank attributed the improvement to lower default and delinquency rates and fewer provisions for loan losses.
The bank suffered a 341 billion won net loss in the third quarter last year because of huge loan losses incurred from the financial problems that engulfed credit card companies and SK Global, the bankrupt trading arm of SK Group.
The Financial Supervisory Commission last month issued a "disciplinary warning," the most severe punitive action against bank officials, accusing Kim of accounting irregularities.
Under commission regulations, Kim, much credited for setting an example in turning around debt-laden banks, will be banned from serving as an executive of any domestic bank for three years.
The punishment follows a separate decision by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to fine Kookmin Bank two billion won (1.7 million dollars) for accounting irregularities last month.
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