Concept
Woori Private Banking is the private-banking franchise inside Woori Bank's Wealth Management Group, the core bank of Woori Financial Group. Its flagship brand is TWO CHAIRS, created in 2003 when Woori launched Korea's first bank-run PB business unit; the name references Van Gogh's "Two Chairs". Under the bank's own definition, a PB client holds at least KRW 100 million in monthly-average financial deposits — 308,000 such clients at end-2024, per the official annual report. Aggregate PB AUM is not disclosed.
History and evolution
- January 1899 — Daehan Cheon-il Bank founded, Korea's oldest bank lineage.
- January 1999 — Commercial Bank and Hanil Bank merge into Hanbit Bank.
- April 2001 — Woori Finance Holdings established, Korea's first holding company.
- May 2002 — renamed Woori Bank.
- 2003 — PB unit and the Two Chairs brand launched.
- November 2014 — the holding company merged into the bank.
- January 2019 — Woori Financial Group re-established (KRX and NYSE listings).
- December 2021 — full privatisation after 23 years (KDIC exit).
- May 2024 — brokerage re-entry via the Korea Foss Securities acquisition, creating Woori Investment & Securities.
- 2025 — insurance added: Tongyang Life and ABL Life.
Regulation
Woori Bank is supervised by the FSC and FSS, with KDIC deposit insurance; the parent group is listed on the KRX and NYSE. Compliance record: DLF (March 2020) — an FSC fine of KRW 19.71 billion plus a 6-month private-fund sales suspension. Lime (2022) — Woori was the largest bank seller (KRW 357.7 billion); an FSC fine of KRW 7.2 billion plus a 3-month ban on new private-fund sales; customer refunds ran through 2023. 2022 embezzlement — an employee stole KRW 69.7 billion over 2012–2020; the FSS sanction of 4 January 2024 brought an institutional warning plus a KRW 878 million fine, and the employee's 15-year sentence was upheld in April 2024. June 2024 — a second embezzlement (~KRW 10 billion, Gimhae branch). Improper loans: the FSS found KRW 233.4 billion of improper loans over five years, including KRW 45.1 billion tied to a former chairman's relatives (indictments in early 2025); the opening of FSS sanction proceedings was reported in October 2025. Separately, the group's 2025 Form 20-F, filed on 22 April 2026, disclosed a January 2025 prosecution allegation concerning KRW 51.7 bn of loans to a former chairman's relative from September 2021 to August 2023, and an additional March 2026 indictment involving alleged loan fraud using forged documents. The bank reported cooperation with the court and FSS in that filing. The KRW 51.7 bn amount concerns that criminal-case scope and does not replace the broader FSS loan-review total.
Source of wealth
Typical client fortunes: SME owners, professionals, executives, real-estate wealth and multi-generational families; in addition, foreign HNW residents in Korea (the Jeju branch). How the source of funds is documented is covered in a separate wiki entry.
Who it serves
Affluent and high-net-worth clients in South Korea: business owners and their families, heirs to large fortunes, professionals and executives with KRW-denominated wealth. Since January 2026 a Jeju Global PB branch has served foreign HNW residents of Korea; there is no international PB booking outside the country.
Services
Advisory-led management: portfolios of funds, bancassurance, trusts and pension products; a "dual care" model pairing the branch PB with headquarters experts; real-estate, tax and pension consulting. Trust and estate planning, including gift trusts and inheritance/gift tax consulting. The ACT team (the business-succession department, elevated in early 2026) advises on succession and M&A. There is no true discretionary portfolio management — the model is advisory-led, complemented since 2025 by AI portfolio tools. Concierge services, lifestyle events and safe-deposit boxes round out the offer. WM fee income reached KRW 306 billion in 2024 (+16.3%), according to published reports.
Entities
| Jurisdiction | Legal entity | Form and supervision | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | Woori Bank | Bank; FSC/FSS supervision, KDIC deposit insurance | PB core: Two Chairs, trusts, advisory |
| South Korea | Woori Investment & Securities | Group broker-dealer (since May 2024; retail launch January 2026; first bank–securities complex branch in Yeouido) | Brokerage and investment products |
| South Korea | Woori Asset Management | Group asset manager | Funds and asset management |
| South Korea | Tongyang Life / ABL Life | Insurers, part of the group since 2025 | Bancassurance |
| South Korea | Woori Financial Group | Holding company, KRX/NYSE listed, established January 2019 | Parent structure |
Strengths
- Korea's oldest banking lineage (since 1899) and the country's first bank-run PB unit (2003).
- Scale: 308,000 PB clients at end-2024; Woori Bank FY2025 net income of KRW 2.582 trillion (−15% YoY), group FY2025 attributable net income of KRW 3.124 trillion, total assets of KRW 601.4 trillion at end-2025 — the fourth-largest Korean financial holding group.
- A full platform: bank, brokerage, asset manager and insurance.
- A strong estate- and succession-planning bench (the ACT team).
Where it falls short
- Domestic-only: no international PB booking.
- No true discretionary management — the model is advisory-led.
- Thresholds, products and services are tied to KRW and the Korean tax regime.
Leadership: Woori Financial Group Chairman & CEO Yim Jong-yong (since March 2023; a second 3-year term confirmed on 23 March 2026), Woori Bank President Jung Jin-wan (since January 2025), and WM Group head Kim Sun (since early 2025).
Q/A
What is Two Chairs?
Woori's flagship private-banking brand, created in 2003 alongside Korea's first bank-run PB business unit. The name references Van Gogh's "Two Chairs".
What is the entry threshold?
By the bank's own definition, a PB client holds at least KRW 100 million in monthly-average deposits; dedicated TCE and TWO CHAIRS W centres start at KRW 1 billion, according to published reports. Since March 2026 the tiers are Silver (KRW 500 million), Gold (KRW 3 billion) and Black (KRW 5 billion), according to published reports.
Are deposits protected?
Yes: KDIC covers KRW 100 million per depositor per institution, effective 1 September 2025. Funds and performance-linked products are excluded, according to official information.
Is discretionary management available?
No, Woori has no true DPM: the model is advisory-led, complemented since 2025 by AI portfolio tools.
Does the bank serve non-residents?
There is no international PB booking; the business is Korea-focused. Since January 2026, however, a Jeju Global PB branch serves foreign HNW residents of the country.