NH NongHyup Financial Group said on Thursday it has built a group-level “three-pronged” infrastructure spanning banking, securities and asset management to prepare for the introduction of a fund-type retirement pension system. It is a strategy to secure leadership in the retirement pension market by combining the system’s required investment expertise and tailored asset management capabilities with the competitiveness of its subsidiaries.

NongHyup Bank ranked first among five major banks, as of the fourth quarter of last year, in returns on principal non-guaranteed products: 19.33 percent for defined benefit (DB), 21.55 percent for defined contribution (DC) and 22.04 percent for individual retirement pensions (IRP). It is seen as having the foundation to play the role of a custodian when fund-type retirement pensions are introduced, based on its fund custody and accounting infrastructure.

NH Investment & Securities has built an OCIO track record based on its experience managing public funds, and it was selected as an overall excellent provider and No. 1 in the securities sector in the 2025 Ministry of Employment and Labor evaluation of retirement pension providers. NH-Amundi Asset Management recently topped 1 trillion won in net assets, based on the performance of its pension-focused fund, the Hanaro TDF series.

With a joint declaration by labor, management and the government signaling the mandatory adoption of retirement pensions and the introduction of a fund-type system, NH NongHyup Financial is holding briefings for experts and operating a group-level task force to prepare response strategies.

It also plans to design a tailored pension model for farmers with high income volatility, in preparation for the introduction of a farmers’ retirement pension system.

Lee Chan-woo (이찬우), chairman of NH NongHyup Financial Group, said, “In the coming era of fund-type retirement pensions, it will be difficult to meet the complex needs of companies and subscribers with the capabilities of a single company alone.” He added, “We will present a new standard in the retirement pension market by combining the bank’s return management capabilities, the securities unit’s OCIO expertise and the asset manager’s global network.”