Articles by Choi Jae-hee
Choi Jae-hee
cjh@heraldcorp.com-
FSS warns KB Savings Bank against lax control of soaring household debt
Amid the government’s move to bolster household debt management, the Financial Supervisory Service said Tuesday it has handed down a warning to KB Savings Bank over its loose screening for unsecured loans. KB Savings Bank turned out to have increased the amount of credit loans allowed for households since July last year by raising its lending programs’ loan limit and offering a discounted interest rate, without a strict review process led by the executive meeting, a FSS official sai
Market Sept. 7, 2021
-
Banks’ lending rates inch up amid tighter household debt control
Amid growing pressure from the government’s tightened grip on soaring household debt, South Korean banks’ lending rates sharply edged up in recent months, data showed Sunday. The adjustable rate charged on mortgage loans extended by the nation’s four major banks -- KB Kookmin Bank, Shinhan, Hana and Woori -- remained between 2.80 percent and 4.30 percent, as of Friday. Both the bottom and upper ends of the range rose 0.5 percentage point from 2.35 to 3.88 percent estim
Market Sept. 5, 2021
-
Public pension payment to reach W60tr in 2022 amid rapid population aging
South Korea, one of the world‘s fastest aging societies, is facing a steep rise in its public pension payment, data showed Sunday. Nearly 60 trillion won ($53.76 billion) will be taken out from the nation’s four public pension programs, including the national pension, government employees pension, military personnel pension, and private school teachers pension, in 2022, up 6.2 percent from this year’s 55.8 trillion won, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Econo
Economy Sept. 5, 2021
-
New FSC chief stresses unity with FSS
Koh Seung-beom, the new chairman of the policymaking Financial Services Commission, vowed Thursday to bolster cooperation with the market watchdog Financial Supervisory Service in a gesture to ease the long-standing power struggle between the two agencies. “I’ve stressed that the FSC and FSS should move in unison. As the FSC’s new head, I will ramp up efforts to strengthen communication with the FSS’ chairman in terms of promoting financial policies,” Koh told repo
Economy Sept. 2, 2021
-
월스트리트베츠 설립자 “해외 공매도 세력에 대한 부정적 시각 이해... 한국판 게임스톱 지지한다”
올해 초 게임스톱 사태로 뉴욕증시를 달궜던 월스트리트베츠 커뮤니티의 설립자 제이미 로고진스키(Jaime Rogozinski)가 한국주식투자자연합회가 주도하는 반공매도 운동에 지지를 표명했다. 로고진스키(39)는 이날 코리아헤럴드와의 인터뷰에서 “최근 한국 개인투자자들 사이에서 확산되고 있는 해외∙기관투자자 중심 공매도 세력에 대한 부정적 시각에 공감한다”며 “궁극적으로 전세계 개인투자자들의 권리를 위해 움직이는 월스트리트베츠는 어떤 식으로든 한투연의 반공매도 운동에 힘을 보태고 싶다”고 말했다. 그는 또 “금융당국이 일방적으로 추진하는 하향식(Top-down) 제도 개선을 기다리고 있기보단 보통의 사람들이 목소리를 내는 (Bottom-up)의 운동이야말로 금융 시장의 건전한 질서를 유지하는 데 효과적”이라고 덧붙였다. 미국 개미들의 성지로 불리는 월스트리트베츠는 2012년 미주개발은행에
한국어판 Sept. 1, 2021
-
[Herald Interview] ‘Empowerment of individuals, solution for fair market,’ says WallStreetBets founder
The way to create a fair market for all is to empower individual investors to keep bureaucratic power in check, the founder of WallStreetBets, a group of US retail investors behind the GameStop saga, told The Korea Herald in a recent interview. Vowing to support an anti-short selling campaign in Korea, WallStreetBets Founder Jaime Rogozinski said he understands the nature of South Korea‘s negative public sentiment toward some foreign institutions. “I agree with negative public sent
Market Sept. 1, 2021
-
Amateur investors demand tougher penalties for illegal short selling
In an attempt to deter massive short selling of shares of anti-cancer drugmaker HLB, an army of some 2,200 retail investors flocked to the tech-heavy Kosdaq, 30 minutes before market closing on July 15. Dubbed the “K-stop movement,” the campaign mimicked a surprising case of retail investors in the US that thwarted hedge funds’ sophisticated plan of betting on the price fall of video game retailer GameStop. But the Korean version of the GameStop buying frenzy ended in
Market Sept. 1, 2021
-
Every South Korean to face W100m of national debt in 2038: study
South Korea’s national debt per person is expected to grow at a fast clip to reach 100 million won ($85,800) in 2038 as a result of government’s expansionary spending to keep its economic growth in line with an aging population, a study showed Monday. Illustrating 2038 as the year when a newborn this year graduates from high school, the Korea Economic Research Institute, a local think tank, warned that future generations will be placed with a heavy financial burden even before th
Economy Aug. 30, 2021
-
FSC chief nominee hints at tougher measures to curb household debt
Financial Services Commission Chairman nominee Koh Seung-beom said Friday that the financial regulator plans to take additional policy actions to curb a sustained increase in household debt, citing high indebtedness as the main drag on Asia‘s fourth-largest economy. “The government unveiled a set of steps to rein in household debt in April, but the economic fallout from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has continued to drive up the debt growth,” Koh said in a parliamentary hear
Business Aug. 27, 2021
-
SMEs, borrowers brace for impact of rate hike
Businesses and individual borrowers in South Korea voiced criticism on Thursday over the central bank’s decision to raise its key interest rate for the first time in 15 months, due to a possible increase in their debt burdens. In an effort to counter growing inflationary pressure and household debt, the Bank of Korea hiked its key rate by 0.25 percentage point to 0.75 percent. The move is likely to exacerbate debt-servicing burdens, particularly for the self-employed and small business
Business Aug. 26, 2021
-
FSC chief nominee: 'cryptocurrencies are not real'
Financial Services Commission Chairman nominee Koh Seung-beom expressed skepticism on Wednesday over the value of cryptocurrency as a financial asset, confirming his tone in line with the regulator’s move to tighten its grip on local crypto exchanges. “International organizations, including the Group of 20 and the International Monetary Fund, as well as a lot of market experts, find it difficult to consider virtual currencies as a financial asset, and think they could not f
Market Aug. 25, 2021
-
Bottom 20% hit hardest by food price hikes
Soaring food prices have pushed South Korea’s low-income families to spend more on food, fueling an increase in the number of households running a deficit, data showed Monday. According to data from the Korean Statistical Information Service, monthly expenditures on food and nonalcoholic beverages by households in the lowest income quintile, or the bottom 20 percent, stood at 244,000 won ($208) on average, during the second fiscal quarter, up 12 percent from a year earlier.
Economy Aug. 23, 2021
-
Un-real estate: Young Koreans look to make real money from virtual land
Park Seol-min, 28, half-jokingly tells his friends that he bought a 10-square-meter plot in the wealthy Gangnam area of Seoul for less than 40,000 won ($34). As you might expect, given that apartments in the area trade for more than 30 million won per square meter, there’s a catch: The plot only exists in a virtual, computerized world. Park is one of a growing number of “virtual homeowners,” who spend real money on real estate in metaverse platforms such as Earth 2, w
Market Aug. 23, 2021
-
Second-tier banks urged to tighten lending amid soaring household debt
South Korea’s financial watchdog has called on second-tier banks to tighten lending standards on their extension of personal unsecured loans, as part of a move to curb ballooning household debt, industry sources said Sunday. The Financial Supervisory Service had sent a message to the Korea Federation of Savings Banks on Friday urging its member companies, including savings banks and mutual financial cooperatives, to keep the maximum amount of credit loans allowed for individuals below th
Market Aug. 22, 2021
-
S. Korea’s conflict index ranks 3rd among OECD countries: report
The level of national conflicts in South Korea ranked third among members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, raising calls for government efforts to strengthen its conflict management capacity, a report showed Thursday. According to a report by the Federation of Korean Industries, a major business lobbying group here, Seoul’s comprehensive conflict index presenting scores running from zero to 100, stood at 55.1 as of August. It was the third highest amo
Economy Aug. 19, 2021
Most Popular
-
1
Contentious grain bill put directly to plenary meeting for vote
-
2
Yoon's approval rating plunges to all-time low
-
3
Will tug-of-war between doctors, government end soon?
-
4
Climate impacts set to cut 2050 global GDP by nearly a fifth
-
5
Trilateral talks acknowledge ‘serious’ slumps of won, yen
-
6
[KH Explains] Hyundai's full hybrid edge to pay off amid slow transition to pure EVs
-
7
North Korea removes streetlights along cross-border roads with South
-
8
Russia's denial of entry of S. Korean national unrelated to bilateral ties: Seoul official
-
9
Farming households dip below 1m for first time in 2023
-
10
S. Korea votes in favor of Palestinian bid for UN membership