South Korea’s 79 savings banks recorded combined net profit of 765.8 billion Korean won in the first half of this year, up 508.8 billion won, or 198.0%, from 257 billion won a year earlier, the Financial Supervisory Service said. The result was the highest first-half performance since 2022, supported by a surge in non-interest income, securities gains and lower loan-loss costs. Loan assets, corporate lending, total assets and deposits all increased, while private mid-rate loans for lower-income and lower-credit borrowers also expanded. The overall delinquency rate rose to 6.26%, led by a jump in corporate-loan delinquencies to 8.38%, even as household-loan delinquencies and the ratio of substandard-or-below loans improved. The sector’s capital adequacy ratio edged lower to 15.73%. The Korea Federation of Savings Banks expects profitability to continue in the second half but warned that the delayed property-market recovery and weaker debt-servicing capacity among vulnerable borrowers will keep the operating environment difficult.