South Korea's Korean Financial Industry Union and the Korea Federation of Banks' employers council tentatively agreed to shift standard bank branch opening times from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. from April 2027, while retaining the 4:00 p.m. closing time. The move will reduce in-person service to six hours and 30 minutes and has drawn mixed reactions from customers concerned about queues, shrinking branch networks and limited access to foreign exchange, account procedures and loan consultations that can be difficult to complete through mobile banking. Other customers said routine services are increasingly handled through mobile apps and phone consultations. Bank employees said the later opening recognizes preparation work required before branches open, including system setup and cash handling. The tentative 2026 industry-wide deal, reached after about five months and more than 50 negotiation rounds, also includes a 3.0% wage increase, flexible scheduling, parental and family-support measures, Friday customer cutoff and compensatory-leave provisions, and roughly 100 billion won ($71 million) in management funding. The agreement does not address relocating state-run banks to provincial areas.