OK Financial enters non-life insurance with Yebyeol acquisition, pledges over W110b in additional capital

OK Financial Group has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire Yebyeol Non-Life Insurance, marking its entry into the non-life insurance sector.

The group announced Thursday that it had concluded the share purchase agreement with the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. Once the deal closes, OK Financial will expand its business beyond its core savings bank and capital operations into non-life insurance.

Yebyeol Non-Life Insurance was established as a bridge insurer to absorb the insurance contracts of MG Non-Life Insurance, which had been designated an insolvent financial institution. The Financial Services Commission decided in September 2025 to transfer MG Non-Life's insurance contracts and, in principle, all of its assets to Yebyeol, which began operations on Sept. 4 of that year.

The sale of Yebyeol proceeded after the first bid this year drew no valid competition and was relaunched. Only Korea Investment Holdings participated in the April bid, failing to meet the minimum competition threshold. The June re-bid attracted four parties — OK Financial, Korea Investment Holdings, Heungkuk Fire & Marine Insurance and JC Flowers. The Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. selected OK Financial's affiliate OK Next as the preferred bidder on July 10.

Yebyeol's widening second-quarter losses have increased OK Financial's capital injection burden beyond initial projections. The group now expects to need more than 110 billion won ($82.1 million) in additional funds on top of its original plan, and is discussing ways to accelerate the disbursement of large-scale investment capital that had been scheduled for a later date.

After the deal closes, OK Financial plans to prioritize protecting the rights of about 1 million policyholders and restoring the insurer to sound management. The group intends to raise key solvency indicators, including the Korea Insurance Capital Standard ratio, above regulatory thresholds through financial support from the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. and its own additional capital contributions.

Alongside the management turnaround, OK Financial plans to expand the organization. The group will form a working-level TF and grow Yebyeol's current workforce of about 260 to between 500 and 600 employees, with hiring planned across all divisions — from the CEO level down to frontline staff, sales and risk management.

"We have experience acquiring insolvent savings banks that were previously managed by the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. and growing them into the industry's second-largest player," an OK Financial official said. "We will establish Yebyeol Non-Life Insurance as a trusted non-life insurer in the market as well."