KB Financial not interested in taking over Woori Financial

The group prioritises on securing the sufficient capital adequacy this year amid eurozone debt crisis.

KB Financial Group clarified its position that it will not bid to take over the state-run Woori Financial, at least for 2012.

“This year, we have no plan to acquire any financial company including Woori Financial Group and the group’s subsidiaries,” KB Financial chairman Euh Yoon-dae told The Korea Herald on Monday.

His stance comes as government officials and Woori Financial chairman Lee Pal-seung are striving to revitalize the project to privatize the tax money-injected Woori.

KB Financial, one of the two largest financial groups along with Woori, has been seen as a potential bidder for Woori or a Woori subsidiary over the past few years.

Euh said that global financial markets are expected to undergo a worsening business environment this year in the wake of the eurozone debt crisis.

“Accordingly, we will put priority on enhancing the internal power, which involves securing the sufficient capital adequacy, this year.”

View the full story in Korea Herald.