Shinhan Bank's headquarters in central Seoul / Courtesy of Shinhan Bank

Shinhan Bank has introduced an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered sentiment analysis system to improve its customer service, the lender said, Friday.

The bank said the system, which was adopted in collaboration with the country's telecommunication giant KT, analyzes a wide range of the emotional states of customers in real time. It does this by analyzing their voice, stress levels and word choices during interactions with the AI voicebot.

If necessary, the system immediately connects the customer to human bankers or other appropriate services.

The company aims to bolster its defense against financial fraud, including voice phishing, by using the system to detect signs of anxiety or specific words in customer voices. According to a Shinhan official, these sensitive words are kept confidential to prevent them from being exploited by criminals.

If such indicators are identified, the AI system suspects potential financial accidents and promptly connects the customer to the dedicated fraud response team at the bank.

Shinhan Bank is one of the country's leading financial institutions concerning digital transformation, with customer service being one of the first areas impacted by this initiative.

However, the expansion of AI-powered customer services has caused increasing complaints from customers, especially from older adults.

The Shinhan official said the firm is well aware of such complaints, stressing that AI is merely a supplementary tool that deals with simple and repetitive tasks.

"As the AI system is not perfect yet, complex and difficult consultations are still handled by human bankers," the official said.

"We will continue to advance our customer service."