A foreign investor group of South Korea-based Kyobo Life Insurance is in hot water as its plan to exit from the insurer faces a setback after an indictment of its officials, while its demand for an initial public offering by Kyobo Life since 2012 remains unfulfilled to this day. Key officials of the international investor group, led by Hong Kong-based private equity firm Affinity Equity Partners, and Seoul-based accounting firm Deloitte Anjin have been indicted by Korean prosecutors for alleged

South Korea’s stock market was dealt a further blow following a conviction of Samsung group heir apparent Lee Jae-yong on Monday, with large-cap stocks posting bigger losses. This comes as a recent rally, largely driven by massive retail investor participation since late 2020, has been followed by a stock market correction in the last two trading days. 　 The Korea Exchange’s main board Kospi closed at 3,013.93 points, down 2.3 percent from Friday, despite retail investors’ c

Samsung shares came under the market spotlight as the amount of inheritance tax was set at a record 11.03 trillion won ($9.96 billion) based on closing prices of the stocks on Tuesday. Among shares held by late Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee are those of tech giant Samsung Electronics, IT solutions developer Samsung SDS, construction firm Samsung C&T, and insurer Samsung Life Insurance. According to the nation’s sole securities exchange operator Korea Exchange, the value of Lee&rsquo

South Korea is expected to witness a decentralization of the office market in its capital city Seoul over the next few years as major tenants are planning to relocate and new submarkets emerge, a report showed Monday. Chaebol tenants such as Samsung, Doosan, Hyundai Heavy, LG are planning relocations within the Greater Seoul area, while banking group Hana Financial Group and public institutions are considering moving out of Seoul, leading to a “great reshuffling” of the Seoul offic

South Korean businesses on Thursday cried foul over the passage of what they called anti-business bills, saying the revisions could threaten management controls and put pressure on them at a time of unseen hardships stemming from the pandemic. Among the bills that passed the National Assembly on Wednesday, a revision to the Commercial Act regarding the “3 percent rule” has been met with the most criticism. The amendment requires listed companies to elect at least one auditor fro

The stock value of Lee Kun-hee, the late chief of South Korea's top conglomerate Samsung Group, soared more than 21 percent this year due largely to a surge in the share price of group flagship Samsung Electronics Co., data showed Tuesday. The value of stocks held by Lee, who died on Oct. 25 after being bedridden following a heart attack in 2014, totaled 21.04 trillion won ($19.4 billion) as of Wednesday, according to the data from market researcher CXO Institute. It was up 21.1 percent from L

Since the passing of the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee on Oct. 25, stocks of the conglomerate’s seven affiliates, including Samsung Electronics and Samsung C&T, rose 13.8 percent on average, according to data released Monday. The increase is thought to be driven by expectations of an economic recovery as well as increased dividend payouts to help late Samsung chairman’s heirs pay inheritance taxes. Samsung Electronics, the crown jewel of the nation’s largest co

Shares in major units of South Korea's top conglomerate, Samsung Group, have risen at double-digit rates since the death of its chief a month ago on hopes for an economic recovery and more dividends from them, data showed Monday. Share prices of Samsung Electronics and six other major subsidiaries jumped an average 13.8 percent between Oct. 25, when Lee Kun-hee died after being bedridden following a heart attack in 2014, and Friday, according to the data from the Korea Exchange. Shares in Sams

As daily confirmed coronavirus cases in South Korea exceeded 300 for the second consecutive day, large companies feared another bout of shutdowns similar to that during the first wave of the pandemic early this year. Over the past few days, Samsung, LG, SK and Hyundai Motor closed some of their office buildings after their employees were infected. On Wednesday, Samsung Electronics said one employee working at its mobile research center in Suwon was confirmed to have coronavirus. The firm clo

Boosted by the recent surge in stock prices of Samsung Group affiliates, the stockholding value of late group Chairman Lee Kun-hee surpassed the 20 trillion won ($18.07 billion) mark for the first time, data showed Tuesday. According to data compiled by local corporate tracker Chaebul.com, the accumulated stock value of the late chairman came to some 20.08 trillion won as of Monday, soaring about 14 percent from some 17.62 trillion won at the end of last year. Lee died last month after six year

The stock value of Lee Kun-hee, the late chief of South Korea's top conglomerate Samsung Group, has surpassed the 20 trillion won mark for the first time thanks largely to a surge in shares of tech giant Samsung Electronics Co., data showed Tuesday. The value of stocks held by Lee, who died on Oct. 25 after being bedridden following a heart attack in 2014, totaled 20.08 trillion won ($18.1 billion) as of Monday, according to the data from market researcher Chaebol.com. It was up about 14 perce

Financial affiliates of South Korea’s largest conglomerate Samsung Group announced Thursday that they would halt investment projects linked to coal-power businesses as part of their efforts to run operations in an environmentally responsible manner. Samsung’s insurance arms Samsung Life Insurance and Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, among others, will stop investing in coal-fired power stations or lending money to operators of such power plants. They will also stop purchasing

Members of the bereaved Samsung ownership family are expected to see major net worth boosts, as the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee left behind massive amounts of stocks they -- including heir apparent Lee Jae-yong -- stand to inherit, data showed Monday. Late Chairman Lee’s personal fortune in the form of stocks -- subject to a handover to the families -- was worth a combined 17.7 trillion won ($15.6 billion) as of Thursday’s market closing, according to data from financial market infor

Amid escalating market interests on a grand succession scenario of late chairman’s shares to his children, data showed on Tuesday that his family may have received some 3 trillion won ($2.7 billion) in dividends since 2014. According to data compiled by the financial regulator Financial Supervisory Service, the total dividend paid to the chairman and his family between 2014 and 2019 reached 2.8 trillion won. When dividends paid to the family this year are added, the figure is highly likel

Stocks of Samsung Group’s key affiliates rallied Monday on expectations of a possible corporate governance revamp at South Korea’s largest conglomerate after the passing of Chairman Lee Kun-hee. Anticipation that the companies might increase dividend payouts to help the owner family secure funds to pay inheritance taxes also boosted the stock prices, according to market watchers. Construction firm Samsung C&T and Samsung Life Insurance, two of the companies that allow the Lee