Pay W30m over 5 years, collect W5.6m a year for life from 65: iM Financial draws crowds at Herald Money Festa 2026

"Should I keep the pension plan I already have, or switch to something else?"

The iM Financial booth at Herald Money Festa 2026, held Friday at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, was packed with visitors looking to review their retirement savings and fine-tune their pension plans. Demand for personal pension consultations was notable not only among those nearing or already past retirement age, but also among people in their 20s and 30s.

The product drawing the most attention was a variable life insurance policy with a guaranteed minimum annual return of 7 percent. Three products — iM Start Pro for early-career workers, iM Master Pro for those in their 30s through 50s, and iM Travel Pro variable annuity insurance for those approaching retirement — offer a guaranteed pension amount accruing at 7 percent simple interest for up to 40 years, then at 5 percent simple interest thereafter, helping policyholders build a stable retirement fund.

The booth offered personalized consultations comparing premium payments against projected pension payouts after retirement. One sample plan presented to a customer in their 30s showed that paying 500,000 won ($368) a month for five years — a total of 30 million won ($22,100) — would yield an annual payout of about 5.6 million won for life starting at age 65.

When one visitor asked what would happen if a policyholder died before receiving the full value of their pension, a consultant explained that death before the pension start date would trigger a minimum death benefit based on premiums already paid, and that coverage would continue even after the pension start date, based on the lifetime pension reference amount.

Covering living expenses in retirement was another top concern. Middle-aged visitors carrying heavy premium burdens were particularly keen to adjust existing policies or switch to annuity-type products to build retirement funds. Inquiries ranged from comparing the coverage terms of existing pension plans to designing supplementary income to fill the gap left by the national pension alone.

A visitor in their 60s from Yongin in Gyeonggi Province said they had come to check whether their existing pension plan was at a disadvantage compared with other products. Kim Jin-hwa, a visitor in her 50s from Nowon-gu in Seoul, also sought advice on how to prepare for retirement living costs, having set aside no separate pension beyond the national pension.

A particularly popular consultation involved "staircase pension" planning — splitting pension start dates so that payouts increase as the policyholder ages. Setting up a separate contract to begin at 70, on top of one starting at 65, can supplement pension income during the years when earned income shrinks or stops entirely, consultants explained.

"One approach is to stagger the income so that the money coming in increases step by step once your salary stops," a consultant said. "Splitting coverage across multiple contracts also means you can wind down just one of them if you urgently need cash, and you can set a different pension start date for each."

iM Financial drew visitors with interactive events showcasing the group's various collaboration projects. The booth, decorated in the group's signature mint color, promoted its brand as a commercial financial group and gave out an assortment of souvenirs through a slot machine game.

Products created in collaboration with E-mart's private label No Brand, featuring the group's mascot characters Dandi and Ddokdi, proved especially popular. Staff at the booth told visitors that glucose candy printed with Dandi's image had also been a hit among players at a Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association tournament sponsored by iM Financial — a detail that drew warm reactions from the crowd as they picked up the treats.