The card industry is undergoing its most significant transformation since its inception. In the past, the number of members and merchants determined competitiveness, but now data, platforms, and artificial intelligence (AI) are the key factors. As the pressure from easy payment systems and big tech intensifies, and with stablecoins and AI agents disrupting the payment market, the very existence of card companies is being questioned.
Park Chang-hoon, CEO of Shinhan Card, is recognized as a leader striving to transform the company from a traditional card issuer into an AI-based lifestyle finance platform. With 30 years of experience in the card industry and a background in digital innovation, he is focusing more on designing the future of Shinhan Card than on its present.
Payments Will Not Disappear in the AI Era
To understand Park's financial leadership, it is essential to examine his perspective on the card industry. Many view it as a mature industry, with credit card penetration already at saturation and increasing pressure to lower merchant fees. In the easy payment market, companies like Naver, Kakao, and Toss are rapidly expanding their influence. Some argue that card companies should be more concerned with survival than growth.
However, Park's view differs. He believes that while payment methods are changing, payments themselves will not disappear. Since taking office, he has repeatedly emphasized the importance of "payment competitiveness," asserting that the fundamental purpose of card companies is to facilitate the easiest and most convenient payment for customers. This philosophy is evident in his career.
Having experience in sales, marketing, big data, and platform business, he has led Shinhan Card's digital transformation through various roles, including head of the New Growth Division and head of the Payment Group. He is one of the few CEOs who understands both traditional card sales and future platform business.
Thus, his focus is not merely on issuing more cards but on connecting the entire process of consumer decision-making, product exploration, and payment. In the past, card companies existed at the final stage of payment. However, in the AI era, card companies must design the entire consumer journey. Park's leadership begins at this point.
Preparing for a Future with AI Agents
Park is particularly focused on the future of AI agents. Currently, most consumers search for and compare products before making payments. However, as generative AI advances, this process is rapidly changing. In the future, AI will analyze users' preferences and budgets to find the most suitable products. AI will handle reservations and payments, with humans only providing final approval.
This marks the emergence of an AI agent economy. Shinhan Card is one of the companies actively responding to this change. It successfully conducted the first AI agent-based payment demonstration in the domestic card industry, implementing a service where AI reserves and processes payments for transportation. Additionally, Shinhan Financial is expanding AI-based financial services to prepare for the future payment market.
This is not just a technological demonstration; it is a strategy for survival in the AI era. When AI leads payments, card companies must become the chosen platforms. Otherwise, they risk becoming mere infrastructure providers hidden behind AI platforms. Park is acutely aware of this risk.
Therefore, he aims to position Shinhan Card as a key player in the AI ecosystem, rather than just a company managing payment networks. Investments in stablecoins and blockchain technology align with this strategy, as Shinhan Card is conducting technical verification for building payment infrastructure based on stablecoins and digital assets. Ultimately, the future Park is preparing for is not just a card revolution but an AI payment revolution.
A Major Shift to a Platform Company
Another characteristic of Park's leadership is his platform-centric thinking. Shinhan Financial appointed him as CEO due to his platform competitiveness. The company evaluated Park as the right person to evolve Shinhan Card into a platform enterprise.
Since taking office, he has initiated organizational restructuring, integrating platform-related teams and reorganizing the existing business structure. His goal is not merely to reduce costs but to reshape the company around a platform-centric model.
Shinhan Card already possesses the largest consumer data set in the country, with over 20 million members. This data is not just payment information; it represents a vast asset that reveals consumer lifestyles, travel patterns, interests, and purchasing tendencies. Park has long emphasized the value of data. During his time as head of the big data marketing team, he directly led consumer data analysis initiatives and has continued to push for data-driven platform strategies.
His vision for the future is clear: he wants Shinhan Card to be more than just a company selling financial products; he aims for it to become a platform that connects customers' consumption and financial lives. This vision is similar to the paths taken by American Express and Visa, as well as China's Alipay. If Shinhan Card can evolve into a lifestyle finance platform centered on AI and data, it can create value beyond that of a traditional card company.
Balancing Recovery and Innovation
However, the reality is challenging. Shinhan Card is currently facing dual pressures from declining profitability and intensified competition. Its net profit decreased in 2025, and the profitability gap with Samsung Card has widened. The difference in asset size is also shrinking rapidly.
Moreover, there have been incidents of personal data breaches and conflicts during the organizational restructuring process, leading to criticism that events have not matched the status of the industry leader.
Nevertheless, Park has openly acknowledged these issues. In a message to employees, he stated that the responsibility for the performance decline and incidents lies with the management and promised to restore pride in Shinhan Card.
This aspect highlights his leadership. While many CEOs blame external factors, he prioritizes internal innovation. Initiatives like voluntary retirement and organizational slimming aim not just at cost reduction but at transforming the company into a digitally focused organization.
Ultimately, Park's challenges are twofold: restoring Shinhan Card's performance and creating a new card company that can survive in the AI era. The former is the current challenge, while the latter is a future task. The success of Park's leadership hinges on whether he can address both challenges simultaneously.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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