KB Financial Group ranked 68th on the list of the world’s 100 largest banks by core capital, the highest spot among local lenders, the Bank of Korea said Sunday.

Citing the July edition of the London-based Banker magazine, the central bank BOK said a total of six Korean banks made the world’s top 100 list as of the end of 2012. The five other financial groups were KDB, Woori, Shinhan, Hana (plus Korea Exchange Bank) and NongHyup.

KB Financial saw its core capital come to $19.2 billion at the end of 2012, compared with $16.9 billion a year earlier when it ranked 72nd.

The state-controlled KDB Financial placed 69th with core capital of $18.8 billion, up two notches from 71st with $17.2 billion at the end of 2011.

Woori Financial Group ranked 72nd with core capital of $18.1 billion followed by Shinhan Financial (73rd), Hana Financial (81st) and NongHyup Financial (83rd).

In addition, four more Korean lenders were included in the list of world’s 1,000 major banks. The state-funded Industrial Bank of Korea ranked 111th, followed by Busan-based BS Financial (290th), Daegu-based DGB Financial (322nd) and North Jeolla Province-based JB Financial (744th).

Bank of Korea economists said the nation’s major banks saw their rankings climb thanks to the U.S. dollar losing ground against the Korean won last year.

Meanwhile, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China topped the list, overtaking JP Morgan Chase (2nd) and Bank of America (3rd). U.K.-based HSBC Holdings and China Construction Bank placed 4th and 5th, respectively.

By total assets, Woori Financial was the largest among Korean lenders and 79th in the world with $304.2 billion, followed by Shinhan Financial (86th), Hana Financial (87th), KB Financial (88th), NongHyup Financial (95th) and KDB Financial (111th).

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China grabbed the No. 1 spot in the asset ranking, trailed by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (2nd), HSBC Holdings (3rd) and Deutsche Bank (4th).

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