Articles by Park Ga-young
Park Ga-young
gypark@heraldcorp.com-
With assessment of NFTs done, financial companies actively seek opportunites
Rather than discussing the question of whether non-fungible tokens are a fad, traditional financial institutions are instead asking how they can be incorporated within their business models, according to speakers from major financial firms who gathered at a three-day conference on NFTs. The tokens are digital counterparts of real-world assets, largely visual art and music. More importantly, each NFT is unique, with ownership being traced and protected through blockchain technology. Given that
Market Nov. 6, 2021
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Desire for digital interaction defines where finance is headed: KakaoBank CEO
Human desire for constant, convenient and unique interactions in digital spaces defines where the future of finance, as well as KakaoBank, is headed, the CEO of South Korea’s largest online lender said Wednesday. “People say the ‘uncontact’ phenomenon has triggered digitalization of industries under the pandemic, but they still love to contact, they just want to do it in a digital space. And we are going to see how such human desire will reshape the future of industrie
Market Nov. 4, 2021
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Kakao Pay debuts as 14th in market cap
Kakao Pay, the fintech arm of mobile giant Kakao Corp., became Korea’s 14th-largest stock by market capitalization upon its market debut on the country’s stock market Wednesday, after its opening price doubled from its IPO price. The mobile payment service provider, which offered shares at 90,000 won ($76) for its IPO, began trading at 180,000 won on the main Kospi board and rose to 230,000 won before closing at 193,000 won. If the company remains within the top 50 on the Kosp
Market Nov. 3, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Despite regulatory moves, KakaoBank sees third quarter net profit rise
KakaoBank, the country’s largest internet-only lender by user base, on Tuesday said its net profit in the first three quarters rose 96.6 percent from a year prior, despite growing regulatory moves on household debts that slowed the lender’s growth in the third quarter. In its first quarterly report that reflects its post-IPO performance, the banking arm of mobile giant Kakao Corp., said it recorded 52 billion won ($44.3 million) in net profit in the third quarter of this year, a 28
Market Nov. 2, 2021
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[MARKET EYE] NFTs, DeFi investors in Korea may face taxation
It’s not just cryptocurrencies -- South Korea has been witnessing rapid growth of other forms of digital assets such as nonfungible tokens and decentralized finance. Korean movie star Ha Jung-woo is one of the latest artists riding on the growing interest in the market as he sold his first digital artwork for 55.46 million won ($47,060) in August. Hybe, the management company behind K-pop sensation BTS, and Dunamu, the blockchain company that operates Upbit, the largest cryptocurrency
Economy Nov. 1, 2021
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Stiglitz urges regulators to shut down cryptocurrencies
Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz on Thursday urged regulators around the world to shut down cryptocurrencies, saying it undermines the basis of financial systems as well as its pursuit of transparency. Speaking at a forum hosted by the Seoul city government, the economic professor at Columbia University also suggested market transparency and well-designed regulations as prerequisites for the city to become a global financial hub. “(Cryptocurrencies) are becoming significan
Economy Oct. 28, 2021
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W5tr flows into Kakao Pay IPO subscription
Kakao Pay, which is expected to go public on Nov. 3, attracted more than 5 trillion won ($4.2 billion) during the two-day public subscription for its initial public offering, according to its IPO managers on Tuesday. Based on the subscription number of 1.82 million, each subscriber is expected to obtain at least one stock and up to three depending on the brokerage firm they used. The new stocks available for retail investors number 4.25 million, or 25 percent of the 17 million new shares.
Market Oct. 26, 2021
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Kakao Pay to speed up global expansion after IPO: CEO
Kakao Pay, the fintech arm of mobile giant Kakao Corp., plans to accelerate its global expansion drive after its market debut slated for Nov. 3, the company’s CEO said Monday. “In five years, overseas businesses will become an important part of Kakao Pay,” Ryu Young-joon said during an online press conference Monday, adding that his company plans to target both the cross-border payment industry and other opportunities in finance in the overseas market after the initial publ
Market Oct. 25, 2021
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Bitcoin inches closer to record high amid ETF launches
The world’s largest and best-known cryptocurrency, Bitcoin hit 80 million won ($67,900) on Thursday in Korea, inching closer to a historical high, following the much-anticipated listing of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund in the US. Bitcoin briefly touched 81.2 million won at around midnight, according to the largest crypto exchange Upbit on Thursday. On April 14, Bitcoin’s price reached its record high of 81.48 million won. As of 1:50 p.m, Bitcoin was trading at 79 million won
Market Oct. 21, 2021
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Investors hope for jackpots from crypto exchanges' official market entry
With four crypto exchanges having nearly passed market authorities’ high bar for official registrations, investors are turning their eyes to the four entities already enjoying soaring profits and making steps for their respective market debuts. The four -- Upbit, Korbit, Coinone and Bithumb -- were able to apply for registration by undertaking the long list of anti-money laundering and security measures required by financial authorities. As of Tuesday, Upbit and Korbit have received appr
Market Oct. 21, 2021
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Finance minister says crypto tax plan still on for next year
South Korea’s finance minister once again downplayed the possibility of delaying taxation on cryptocurrency earnings, while emphasizing that his ministry is gearing up to carry out its plan as scheduled. Hong Nam-ki, the minister of Finance and Economy, made such remarks during an Assembly hearing on Wednesday when asked about the preparedness of taxation infrastructure on crypto assets. Hong’s remarks came one day after a lawmaker revealed a survey result in which three crypto e
Economy Oct. 20, 2021
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Kakao Bank, Dell heads discuss future finance platform
Kakao Bank CEO Yoon Ho-young and Michael Dell, founder and CEO of Dell Technology, discussed further cooperation between the two companies and ways to improve competitiveness in the midst of the digital transformation, officials in Seoul said Monday. Dell provides server, network and data storage services to Korea’s largest internet-only bank. The online meeting between the two was held last month to seek cooperation in cloud and big data solutions, Kakao said, without elaborating on w
Market Oct. 18, 2021
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Samsung Electronics shares reenter 70,000 won range
South Korea’s market bellwether Samsung Electronics increased 1 percent to 70,100 won ($59.28) on Friday, after remaining below the sensitive threshold for four consecutive days. The benchmark Kospi climbed 0.88 percent to 3,015.16 points in the same day. Samsung Electronics, Korea’s largest company by market cap, has the biggest group of retail investors -- some 4.54 million -- as of the end of June. Samsung’s stock prices soared to as high as 91,000 won on Jan. 11 but li
Market Oct. 15, 2021
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Nonghyup chairman urges embrace of metaverse
Nonghyup Financial Group Chairman Son Byung-hwan on Friday highlighted the group’s efforts to incorporate the metaverse into its businesses. “Many experts predict that the era of the metaverse is what will come next after this smartphone era,” Son said, urging the company’s executives to “study the possibility of commercialization with interest in the metaverse.” In accordance with Son’s vision, the group said it plans to set up a metaverse task force
Market Oct. 15, 2021
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Samsung Electronics shares reenter 70,000 won range
South Korea’s market bellwether Samsung Electronics increased 1.3 percent to 70,300 won ($59.46) during Friday morning trade, ending a price slide that lasted four consecutive days. The benchmark Kospi climbed 0.89 percent to 3,015.14 points. Samsung Electronics, the largest company in the nation by market cap, has the biggest group of retail investors, who amassed 2.78 trillion won worth of its shares in the 10 trading days ending Wednesday. Friday’s increase followed an indust
Market Oct. 15, 2021
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