Four major financial groups are estimated to see their collective earnings in 2012 drop by 25 percent, or about 2.6 trillion won ($2.4 billion), from a year earlier, according to researchers’ forecast data.

FnGuide, an online financial data provider, predicted Friday that the four groups ― Woori, KB, Hana and Shinhan ― will post 7.8 trillion won in their combined net profit, down from 10.4 trillion won in 2011.

All four groups are scheduled to make public their 2012 earnings on Feb. 7.

Shinhan Financial Group is projected to top the list with an estimated profit of 2.37 trillion won, followed by Hana Financial with 1.93 trillion won, KB Financial with 1.91 trillion won and Woori Financial with 1.65 trillion won, according to FnGuide.

The figures are lower than those projected at the end of 2012. Under instruction from regulators, they had to set aside more loan loss provisions ― which are excluded from earnings ― last December.

An official of the Financial Supervisory Service said that financial groups were required to accumulate loan loss provisions additionally by more than 100 billion won, respectively, in a bid to minimize risky factors of each of their subsidiaries such as credit card and insurance units.

Apart from the burden of heavier loan loss reserves, a research analyst pointed to declining profit from loan interests amid the ongoing low level of the nation’s benchmark rate, set by the Bank of Korea, as a key factor for their estimated fall in earnings.

Still to be seen is whether Korea Exchange Bank, which was acquired by Hana Financial in early 2012, played a significant contribution to the group’s earnings, and its profit comparison with the group’s flagship Hana Bank.

In the credit card sector, KB Kookmin Card, which was spun off from KB Kookmin Bank in 2011, was the most active player among financial group-based issuers. Its competition with Shinhan Card, the nation’s largest issuer, drew wide interest in the market last year.

Woori Financial Group strived to attain asset soundness and expand market shares of each business unit, amid the privatization plan led by policymakers for the public funds-injected group.

Woori, the nation’s largest financial services firm, is pinning hopes for its 2012 performance on its competitive brokerage unit, Woori Investment & Securities, as well as that of its flagship Woori Bank.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)