Han Jun-seong, CEO of GLN International under Hana Financial Group, has rolled up his sleeves to attract external investment.

As the results of external fundraising could have a major impact on the success or failure of the global payments platform, the ‘Global Loyalty Network (GLN)’ business, a heavy responsibility rests on CEO Han’s shoulders.
 

According to Hana Financial Group on the 9th, GLN International is pushing in earnest in 2022 to attract investment from other financial companies and others.

GLN International is currently 100% owned by Hana Bank, but to expand participation from other companies in the Global Loyalty Network, it needs to lower Hana Bank’s stake as soon as possible to secure neutrality. 

In the Global Loyalty Network business, how many partners it can establish cooperative relationships with is extremely important. The more companies that participate in the network, the better consumer convenience and the stronger competitiveness become. 

The Global Loyalty Network is a platform that connects global financial companies, distribution companies, point operators, and others into a single network to provide services such as payments, remittances, cash withdrawals, and coupons through a mobile app.

Just as anyone with a Visa card can make payments at any Visa merchant worldwide, even without a credit card or separate cash on hand, users can conveniently pay at any merchant of Global Loyalty Network member companies with only a smartphone. 

GLN International is a fintech subsidiary of Hana Financial Group that was spun off to expand the Global Loyalty Network business into global markets. After launching as Hana Bank’s fintech subsidiary last year, it was spun off as a separate corporation in July of the same year. 

Hana Financial Group has steadily laid the groundwork over the past five years, including forming a consortium with 23 companies in 9 countries in 2017 and signing an MOU in 2018 with Oracle, an IT company, to build the Global Loyalty Network.

In Korea, payment service providers including Hana Bank, Toss, SSG Pay, SK Pay, and Zero Pay are participating in the Global Loyalty Network.

A Hana Financial Group official said, “GLN International has a plan to expand capital by receiving investments centered on network participants and gradually reduce Hana Bank’s shareholding.”

CEO Han has been involved since the initial conception of the Global Loyalty Network and has demonstrated capability in executing digital strategy, but there are still many tasks to solve ahead.

Along with attracting external investment, CEO Han must also expand the number of countries where Global Loyalty Network services are available.

Currently, the Global Loyalty Network provides services in Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, and Hong Kong, and CEO Han has a plan to expand service regions to China, Australia, and India within this year.

The Global Loyalty Network, which began from the idea of Hana Financial Group Chairman Kim Jung-tai in 2015, was first launched in Taiwan in April 2019. From September 2015 to June 2020, CEO Han served as head of Hana Bank’s Future Finance Group and contributed to the launch of the Global Loyalty Network.

While serving as an executive vice president at Hana Bank, CEO Han led the effort to separate the Global Loyalty Network into a subsidiary as head of the G Project Promotion Team (tentative name), and after GLN International was launched, he became CEO and came to lead the Global Loyalty Network business.

CEO Han has consistently handled digital and new business-related work at Hana Financial Group. 

He worked at KB Kookmin Bank before joining Hana Bank’s computer operations department in 1992.

At Hana Bank, he served as head of New Business Planning Department, manager and head of New Business Promotion Headquarters, head of Future Finance Business Headquarters, executive managing director and executive vice president of Future Finance Group, and executive vice president in charge of Group Digital at Hana Financial Group.

Born in 1966, CEO Han also became known as the youngest executive vice president in the banking sector when he was promoted to executive vice president of Hana Bank in January 2017.

In particular, he drew attention at the time as an executive vice president with only a high school education. CEO Han graduated from Sunrin Commercial High School (currently Sunrin Internet High School). [Business Post reporter Cha Hwa-young]

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