Woori Bank launches a new Open Banking service

The launch aims to offer small and medium enterprises simpler and more convenient financial services. Woori Bank recently started improving its open application programming interface (API) as part of its plan to offer Open Banking as a service (BaaS).

Woori Bank launches new services

Woori Bank is a multinational Korean bank and one of the four largest domestic banks in South Korea, with a strong presence in commercial banking and corporate finance. Its new BaaS solution enables non-financial companies to integrate financial services into their apps conveniently. The bank will offer this service to any company regardless of size, with the aim of moving beyond individual partnerships to attract smaller firms and startups that lack the resources or recognition to partner with financial institutions.

By leveraging Woori Bank’s platform, firms can integrate services simply by connecting to the bank’s system. For instance, a company offering hotel reservations could link its booking functions to Woori Bank’s payment system, allowing its customers to pay directly without the need for complex contracts with payment gateway providers and credit card companies.

The platform is expected to expand partnerships across industries such as retail, fintech, manufacturing, and real estate. The bank anticipates that the BaaS model, which has already proven efficient with larger enterprises, will now expand to enable wide-ranging cooperation with SMEs.

Competition in the sector for entering related markets is expected to increase as Woori Bank introduces service-type banking, targeting specific customer groups. Representatives of the bank mention that a wider range of collaborations will be possible by utilising the new solution, designed by Woori Bank and other companies, to offer SMEs.