Korea’s Shinhan to invest $180 mn in India’s HDFC Credila

South Korea’s Shinhan Bank is set to invest $180 million in HDFC Credila Financial Services Ltd., India’s largest education loan provider, to expand its retail banking business in the world’s most populous country.

Shinhan Bank agreed to buy new shares issued by HDFC Credila to secure about a 10% stake in the student loan provider, the lender of South Korea’s second-largest financial institution Shinhan Financial Group said on Thursday.

“The Indian market is growing more important than ever, given global supply chain reorganization, (need for) geopolitical stability and infinite growth potential with a population of 1.4 billion,” said Shinhan Bank CEO Jung SangHyuk at the ceremony for the agreement on Wednesday in Mumbai.

The investment is expected to boost the financial competitiveness of Shinhan Bank’s Indian business, Jung said.

The bank plans to seek cooperation with other domestic companies to expand its consumer banking business in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Shinhan Bank, which entered India in 1996, the first among South Korean lenders, currently operates six branches in the South Asian country. The bank’s Indian business reported 10 billion won ($7.4 million) in net profit last year, more than double 4.6 billion won in 2022.

Shinhan Bank enjoyed the largest-ever net profit of 549.3 billion won from its overseas businesses in 2023 thanks to healthy earnings from key markets such as Vietnam and Japan.

Write to Euijin Jeong at justjin@hankyung.com
 
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.