[Digital Today reporter Ji-young Lee (이지영)] KB Kookmin Bank said on Monday it has launched the 'KB Star Index-Linked Deposit 26-3', which guarantees principal if held to maturity while allowing customers to seek additional returns depending on changes in the underlying asset.

The product is a 1-year deposit linked to the KOSPI200 index. It comes in three structures: an upside participation type (minimum rate guaranteed), an upside knock-out type (minimum rate guaranteed) and an upside knock-out type (high-return seeking).

The upside participation type offers a maturity rate of 2.95 percent to 3.05 percent per year depending on the underlying asset's rise. The upside knock-out type (minimum rate guaranteed) offers about 2.95 percent to 3.50 percent per year. The upside knock-out type (high-return seeking) allows returns from 2.00 percent to as high as 13.80 percent per year. All rates are before tax deductions.

For the knock-out structures, if the underlying asset rises above a certain level during the observation period, the return is fixed at the minimum rate. The minimum-rate-guaranteed type applies the minimum rate if the rise exceeds 25 percent, while the high-return-seeking type applies it if the rise exceeds 20 percent.

Subscriptions run through April 22. The subscription limit is 100 billion won each for the upside participation type and the upside knock-out type (minimum rate guaranteed), and 50 billion won for the upside knock-out type (high-return seeking).

A KB Kookmin Bank official said, "We expect this will broaden investment choices as we have launched it by expanding limits for structures with strong customer demand."