Shinhan Bank benefits from ‘Park Hang-seo’ fever in Vietnam

The Vietnamese football team’s latest victory in the regional finals under South Korean coach Park Hang-seo has helped South Korean companies.

A leading beneficiary was Shinhan Bank, which appointed Park as honorary ambassador earlier this year, seeking to expand its overseas business in the Southeast Asian state.

The Vietnamese team defeated Malaysia in the ASEAN Football Federation Suzuki Cup finals on Saturday, scoring its first victory in a decade.

Even before the match, Shinhan Bank Vietnam saw its number of clients stand at 1.2 million as of Dec. 10, up from 1 million in March, when Park was named the brand’s commercial model. The number of internet banking service users also climbed to 180,000 from 124,000 during the same period.

Considering the Vietnamese public’s response to last week’s victory and the “Park Hang-seo fever,” the final figures for this year are expected to be visibly higher, according to bank officials.

Other South Korean banks also hope to benefit from Park’s popularity and to expand the number of local offices and the range of services in the coming years.

Among them is Woori Bank, which opened its first Vietnamese office in Hanoi in 1997 and won local corporate authorization in 2016, with a mid-term goal to become Vietnam’s leading bank by 2026.

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldcorp.com)