Woori Bank provided 10.59 trillion won in ESG financing last year

Woori Bank on Tuesday disclosed its ESG management results for last year, reporting more than 10 trillion won in ESG financing and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The bank also expanded the share of female outside directors to 50 percent, strengthening board diversity as part of its broader sustainability push.

The disclosures came as Woori Bank published its "2025 ESG Report," covering the past year's ESG performance and strategic direction. Subtitled "NEXT Finance, NEXT Future," the report reflects the bank's commitment to leading shifts in the financial paradigm — including sustainable finance and a green transition — while taking responsibility for the next generation of finance and the future through ESG.

The report highlights 10.59 trillion won ($7.6 billion) in ESG financing extended last year, surpassing the bank's annual target of 10 trillion won. Through a power purchase agreement signed with Korea Water Resources Corporation in February last year, Woori Bank cut greenhouse gas emissions by 4,686 metric tons from the previous year, while raising the proportion of female outside directors to 50 percent.

Woori Bank also became the first bank in South Korea to publish an ESG report in accordance with the disclosure standards of the Korea Sustainability Standards Board (KSSB). Following the global standard disclosure framework required by the KSSB, the bank organized its previously identified material issues into four core areas: governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets.

Alongside this, the bank conducted a "double materiality assessment" that considers both the impact of its banking activities on the environment and society and the related financial factors, comprehensively analyzing the scale, scope and likelihood of those impacts. Woori Bank also became the first institution in the financial sector to proactively deploy an AI Media Index — an AI-based reputation risk index — to precisely analyze and verify the volume and significance of related news coverage.

The multi-layered assessment identified four major material issues: financial consumer protection, AI and digital transformation, climate change response, and ESG financing expansion. The report is published in digital form only, with no paper printing, in line with the bank's eco-friendly practices, and is available on the Woori Bank website. An English-language version of the report and a promotional video are set to be released in July.

"Woori Bank will continue to advance its global-standard ESG disclosure framework and actively communicate with stakeholders through responsible information disclosure," a bank official said. "We will keep working through ESG management to build a better world and become a bank trusted by society."