Insights

Korean financial firms' overseas expansion stands at a new paradigm shift. According to Issue Monitor #179 by Samjong KPMG Economic Research Institute, as of September 2025, 83 Korean financial firms operate ~470 overseas branches in 46 countries. While quantitative growth from ~330 branches in 33 countries in 2010 is large, the prevailing assessment is that substance has not kept pace with scale — with interest income accounting for 85% (banks), heavy concentration in Asia, and accumulated losses at some branches.

The report defines the present as a transition point from overseas expansion 1.0 to 2.0. The core direction is to move beyond Southeast-Asian-centric hub expansion and interest-income-driven business structures toward diversified country and regional portfolios, expanded non-interest income, and digital/platform-based market entry. Leading global cases include MUFG (large-capital, share-acquisition strategy), Tokio Marine (insurance-led overseas expansion via acquisitions of global insurers), and Nubank (Brazilian digital banking that disrupted the inefficiencies of traditional finance).

The strategic framework is a two-track rebalancing. Both precise rebalancing of existing overseas businesses (sale of low-efficiency assets, profit-generation prioritization) and pioneering of next-generation global hubs and new businesses (capturing markets with high growth potential) are pursued simultaneously, through five execution paths: ① portfolio reconfiguration and capital efficiency strengthening; ② business-line rebalancing; ③ market penetration and localization based on inorganic growth; ④ technology-based global expansion strategy; ⑤ enhanced global operating model and talent management.

What this means for M&A. The report concretizes overseas financial M&A directions in three threads. First, in markets where growth potential is high but Korean financial firms' presence remains limited — developed markets and new axes (Middle East, Europe, Latin America) — taking stakes in or partnership-based entry with local financial firms is presented as an effective strategy. Second, as in MUFG and Tokio Marine, acquisitions of local insurers, asset managers, and digital banking platforms to expand non-interest income will become a core tool for portfolio reconfiguration. Third, two-track capital allocation — reinvesting capital freed from divestments of low-efficiency, low-growth overseas assets into strategic new acquisitions — will emerge as a central element of Korean financial holding companies' medium-to-long-term M&A strategy.

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Full report: Samjong KPMG Economic Research Institute, Issue Monitor #179 (April 2026)

Contact: Samjong KPMG M&A Center