IM Financial Group

IM Financial Group Co., Ltd. is a South Korean financial holding company headquartered in Daegu. The group was established in 2011 as DGB Financial Group after regulatory approval to create a financial holding structure around Daegu Bank and two affiliated businesses, Daegu Credit Information and Kardnet. Its central banking business has historically focused on customers and communities in Daegu and the wider Gyeongsangbuk-do region, giving the group a distinctive regional-bank identity within South Korea's financial system. The holding company was created to coordinate banking and related financial activities under a common corporate structure. Daegu Bank, its flagship operating company, provides the core commercial and retail banking franchise. The group has also expanded beyond traditional deposit-taking and lending through insurance, securities, payments, asset-management and other financial services associated with its subsidiaries and affiliates. This diversification reflects the Korean financial-holding-company model, in which a banking organization uses a parent structure to manage multiple regulated businesses and broaden its customer relationships. A significant expansion step came in 2015, when DGB Financial Group acquired Woori Aviva Life Insurance from Nonghyup Financial Group. The transaction added life-insurance capabilities and broadened the group's product range beyond banking. In 2018, DGB took over HI Investment & Securities from Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, strengthening its presence in securities and capital-markets services. These transactions supported the group's transition from a primarily regional banking organization toward a broader financial group. The organization adopted the name IM Financial Group effective March 26, 2025. The rebranding marked a new corporate identity while preserving the group's existing financial-holding structure and its role as the owner of the IM Bank franchise. The bank formerly known as Daegu Bank is described as IM Bank under the new identity. The group remains primarily associated with South Korea, with its strongest historical market presence in the Daegu-Gyeongbuk area. Publicly available reference material identifies the group's formation, acquisitions and 2025 name change, but does not establish a complete current list of subsidiaries, executive officers, ownership details, stock-exchange information or financial performance figures. Those fields are therefore left unspecified here rather than inferred.

IM Financial Group traces its corporate history to the establishment of DGB Financial Group on May 17, 2011. The new holding company was formed after approval by South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service for a structure built around Daegu Bank and two related businesses: Daegu Credit Information and Kardnet. Kardnet was later renamed DGB U-Pay. The creation of the holding company placed the region's principal banking franchise and associated financial businesses under a common parent. The group's defining business asset has been Daegu Bank, a regional bank serving customers in Daegu and the Gyeongsangbuk-do area. Through this franchise, the group has operated in retail banking, commercial banking, deposits, lending and other services normally associated with a full-service bank. Its regional focus distinguishes it from South Korea's nationwide financial conglomerates, while the holding-company structure provides a platform for adding non-bank activities. DGB Financial Group expanded that platform through acquisitions. In 2015 it acquired Woori Aviva Life Insurance from Nonghyup Financial Group. The purchase introduced life insurance into the group's portfolio and reduced its dependence on banking as its sole major operating category. In 2018 the group took over HI Investment & Securities from Hyundai Heavy Industries Group. That transaction added securities and investment-related capabilities, supporting a broader financial-services model. The organization subsequently operated as a multi-business financial group with banking at its center and additional exposure to insurance, securities, payments and related services. The available reference material does not provide a full chronology of every subsidiary, product launch, leadership change or financial result, so those aspects are not expanded beyond documented information. Effective March 26, 2025, DGB Financial Group changed its corporate name to IM Financial Group. The rebrand represents the group's current identity and is associated with the IM name used for its flagship bank, previously known as Daegu Bank. Despite the change in name, the group's historical identity remains rooted in the Daegu regional banking market and in its evolution from a bank-centered holding company into a more diversified South Korean financial organization.

1. 2025Corporate rebranding as IM Financial Group

   The holding company changed its name from DGB Financial Group to IM Financial Group effective March 26, 2025.

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2. 2018Expansion into securities

   DGB took over HI Investment & Securities from Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, adding securities and capital-markets operations.

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3. 2015Entry into life insurance

   DGB acquired Woori Aviva Life Insurance from Nonghyup Financial Group, broadening the group beyond banking.

   Source
4. 2011DGB Financial Group is established

   DGB Financial Group was founded on May 17, 2011, after regulatory approval for a financial holding company encompassing Daegu Bank, Daegu Credit Information and Kardnet.

   Source

A South Korean diversified financial holding group built around a regional banking franchise, with additional capabilities in insurance, securities, payments and related financial services.

• IM BankBanking

  IM Bank is the group's flagship banking business and the successor identity of Daegu Bank. It provides retail and commercial banking services and has historically concentrated on customers in Daegu and the Gyeongsangbuk-do region. The bank forms the core operating franchise around which the holding company was built.

• Life insuranceInsurance2015

  The group entered life insurance through its 2015 acquisition of Woori Aviva Life Insurance from Nonghyup Financial Group. This business added insurance products and underwriting capabilities to a portfolio previously centered on regional banking.

• Securities and investment servicesSecurities2018

  The group's securities presence was strengthened by its 2018 takeover of HI Investment & Securities from Hyundai Heavy Industries Group. The transaction expanded the holding company's exposure to securities brokerage, investment and capital-markets activities, although the available reference does not specify the full current product catalogue.

• Payments and electronic financial servicesPayments2011

  Payments-related capabilities derive from Kardnet, one of the businesses included in the original 2011 holding-company structure and later renamed DGB U-Pay. The available source identifies the business relationship but does not provide a detailed current description of its offerings.

• 2025Rebranding from DGB Financial Group to IM Financial GroupStrategy

  The financial holding company adopted a new corporate identity after operating for more than a decade under the DGB name.

  What changed. The company changed its name to IM Financial Group effective March 26, 2025, with its flagship bank using the IM Bank identity.

  Aftermath. The group retained its South Korean financial-holding-company structure and its historical association with the Daegu-Gyeongbuk banking market under the new IM identity.

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• 2018Takeover of HI Investment & SecuritiesM&A

  The holding company continued its diversification into non-bank financial services and capital markets.

  What changed. DGB Financial Group took over HI Investment & Securities from Hyundai Heavy Industries Group.

  Aftermath. The takeover strengthened the group's securities and investment-services presence.

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• 2015Acquisition of Woori Aviva Life InsuranceM&A

  DGB Financial Group sought to broaden its financial-services portfolio beyond its regional banking base.

  What changed. The group acquired Woori Aviva Life Insurance from Nonghyup Financial Group.

  Aftermath. The transaction added life-insurance operations to the group's businesses.

  Source

• 2025DGB Financial Group changes its name to IM Financial Group

  The South Korean financial holding company formerly known as DGB Financial Group adopted the name IM Financial Group effective March 26, 2025. The rebrand also accompanied the use of the IM identity for its flagship bank, formerly Daegu Bank.

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• 2018DGB Financial Group takes over HI Investment & Securities

  DGB Financial Group took over HI Investment & Securities from Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, expanding its activities into securities and capital-markets services.

  M&A
  Source
• 2015DGB Financial Group acquires Woori Aviva Life Insurance

  DGB Financial Group acquired Woori Aviva Life Insurance from Nonghyup Financial Group, adding life-insurance operations to its regional banking-centered portfolio.

  M&A
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1. IM Financial Group