AI Wakes Sleeping Money...Financial sector's failed earnings crisis

South Korea’s financial sector is on alert as AI agents begin to compare financial products and move money for customers. Financial companies may lose about 500 billion won in yearly profits because customers no longer need to visit them to find and manage their money.

According to the financial sector on the 22nd, AI agents such as Meta’s “Muse” and OpenAI’s “Dots” are expected to change many parts of everyday financial life. With users’ permission, these AI agents are developing the ability to carry out real tasks, such as signing up for financial products, canceling them, and making payments. If they are connected to financial accounts more widely in the future, they could find forgotten bank deposits, insurance payouts, and card points that are about to expire. They could then move the money into financial products that offer better benefits.

According to financial authorities, forgotten or unclaimed financial assets totaled 18.4482 trillion won at the end of June last year. Bank deposits and savings accounts made up the largest amount, at 7.52 trillion won. Insurance money came next at 5.85 trillion won, followed by card points worth 2.906 trillion won, securities worth 2.686 trillion won, and trust assets worth 102.1 billion won. These are assets that consumers have left behind because they forgot they had an account or insurance money, or because claiming the money was too difficult or time-consuming.

Financial companies are estimated to earn hundreds of billions of won each year from managing these assets. If about 15.5 trillion won of hidden financial assets, not counting card points, is managed at an annual rate of 3%, it generates about 466 billion won a year. Adding the 71.7 billion won in card points that expired in 2024 brings the total related amount to about 538 billion won a year.

In fact, a campaign run by financial authorities last year to help people find hidden financial assets returned 1.6329 trillion won to consumers. If AI agents do this kind of work all the time, the amount of unclaimed money held by financial companies could fall. The pressure to offer extremely low interest rates, such as 0.01% a year on some deposits, could also ease.

[Reporter Park Changyoung]