A foreign student at Yonsei University said she received a pop-up on her phone as she was trying to log into her bank account to check her balance.

“Mobile authentication not available,” it read. “Please visit a bank branch in person.”

Confused, she followed the instructions and went to the bank. It was a short visit but it was nonetheless an inconvenience.

“It was simply because I was a foreigner that I had to make time to go to the bank,” she told The Korea Times on condition of anonymity.

The bank often doesn't let her log in right away, asking for a random authorization. This is a process equally annoying for Koreans, but almost all of them manage to access their accounts without an in-person visit, she said.

“I don't know why — it might be because the authorization did not accept foreign names due to its length or English characters or perhaps this was a rule at the time,” said the student. “I went to the bank even though I was sick just to make it work. It was an inconvenience and very irritating since it was purely due to being a foreigner.”

All the more frustrating was the banking app not being available in English.

“Financial lingo is not easy for foreigners and language is key to feeling secure about finances. Banking in Korea is not the same for ethnic Koreans and foreigners.”

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She is one of many foreigners in Korea experiencing difficulty navigating online banking apps.

Foreign customers have to visit bank branches in person to confirm their identity, depending on their nationality, according to the country's top five commercial lenders — KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Woori, Hana and NH NongHyup.

An official from KB Kookmin said foreigners holding an alien registration card can authorize their identity without face-to-face verification if they use the bank's own certificate system.

“However, some passport holders are unable to verify their identity remotely due to varying rules by their country of origin. In some cases, an in-person visit is required,” the official said.

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Just as troublesome is Korean name character limitations for foreign customers.

Many banks limit names to 20 characters, complicating opening bank accounts and accessing related services, according to a foreign exchange student at a graduate school in Korea.

This is a problem because it extends beyond banking to many online platforms in Korea including Google Play and Apple Store, in his view.

“Not only banks but a number of mobile apps don't allow for long foreign names to access discounts, promotions and online shopping. Included are Seoul Pay+ and ZeroPay,” he said on condition of anonymity.

Those apps require bank verification through text messages, which fail if the name exceeds the character limit.

Issuing a “joint certificate,” or formerly public certificate, as well as a financial certificate or bank-specific certificate, is not enough to use many apps effectively, he said.

“Korean banks need to update their systems to accommodate longer names, to enable all customers to fully utilize banking services regardless of name length. The move will help foreign customers feel more included.”

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Banks say the 20-character limit for names is in accordance with the guidelines of the Korea Federation of Banks and Korean credit information services.

“This is a problem for the banks across the board,” the KB Kookmin official said. “A bank cannot individually change the policy upheld by all industry players.”

Another major issue for foreigners is signing a pile of legally binding contracts to use financial services at banks here.

Anne Geertruida Louisa van Assche, a student at the Netherlands' Leiden University majoring in Korean studies, recalled an awkward experience when she opened a bank account during her stay here as an exchange student two years ago.

“I was handed a pile of contracts filled to the edges with complicated Korean words I didn't understand,” she said.

The papers were not available in English. She was told to write her full name in a circled space at the bottom of numerous pages.

“Many foreign names include prefixes, baptismal names, double family names or other culturally specific extensions. It is a real challenge when you have to fit it into the space suited for a typical three-syllable Korean name. I did not understand what I was doing or agreeing to half the time.”

Korean banks need to start catering more specifically to foreigners' needs, she added.

“To start off, contracts should be translated into various languages, so that foreigners are at least made aware of what they are agreeing to.”

She said user tools including the banking app and information emails and text messages should also offer different language options for easier and more understandable navigation and communication.

Shinhan, Woori and Hana operate banking apps exclusively for global customers, with up to 16 languages available including English, Chinese and Vietnamese.

The Korean language apps of KB Kookmin and NH NongHyup have a button at the top to switch to other languages. Offered are English, Chinese, Japanese, Cambodian, Vietnamese, Thai, Russian, Mongolian, Burmese and Indonesian.

An industry expert said individual lenders' policy revision will have to factor in the country's regulatory needs.

“Korea has a unique credit concentration model, defined by a public credit registry,” a researcher at a private think tank said on condition of anonymity.

“Not many countries have such a centralized system with a weakened emphasis on privacy as Korea does. Payment firms and online platforms will need time before accommodating foreign customers with authorization.”