Most Popular
-
1
No plan to let doctors with foreign licenses practice here anytime soon: PM
-
2
Ador CEO's dismissal to be decided on last day of May
-
3
[Graphic News] Beer the most favored alcoholic drink by Koreans
-
4
Science Ministry expresses regret over Japan’s pressure on Naver
-
5
Haeundae Beach to become sand art museum in late May
-
6
Hostilities get out of hand as YouTuber murders another outside courthouse
-
7
Medical professors set to take day off amid protracted walkouts by junior doctors
-
8
Police officer jumps barefoot into drainage tunnel to save man
-
9
Yoon interacts with public for 1st time since election defeat
-
10
Lee Sun-kyun's posthumuous film to hit theaters in August
-
Who will be the next big name in S. Korea’s internet-only bank business?
The bid to enter South Korea’s promising internet-only bank market has turned into a one-on-one match between two leading consortia -- brokerage-led, capital-affluent Kiwoom Bank and fintech-based, innovation-focused Toss Bank.Kiwoom Bank, led by local brokerage Kiwoom Securities, touts its financial strength and a diverse shareholder base that includes telecommunications and retail companies. Toss Bank, steered by Viva Republica, operator of popular payment platform Toss, has decided to u
March 28, 2019
-
[News Focus] Korea’s finance ‘regulatory sandbox’ experiment takes effect in April
South Korea’s “regulatory sandbox” policy for the finance sector will take effect next week, bringing in a system of flexible regulations with the goal of accelerating innovations in financial technology. The Special Act on Financial Innovation Support was enacted in the legislature in November last year and formally takes effect April 1. Under the legislation, the Korean government is seeking to foster emerging startups in new business arenas -- especially the fintech sector,
March 28, 2019
-
Financial firms compete to take charge of Labor Ministry’s W28tr funds
South Korea’s financial firms are set to compete this week to be picked as outsourced chief investment offices in charge of the government’s unemployment and industrial accident insurance funds worth a total of 28 trillion won ($24.6 billion), sources said Wednesday. The Ministry of Employment and Labor will choose one brokerage and one asset management firm from a pool of bidders, to respectively manage a state-owned 10 trillion won unemployment insurance fund and an 18 trillion won
March 27, 2019
-
KT hits snag in move to increase K bank stake
South Korea’s fair trade authorities are investigating KT for alleged collusion in a government-issued business project -- a development that could hurt the telecom company’s chances of gaining approval to increase its stake in its internet-only bank, K bank.According to industry sources Wednesday, the Fair Trade Commission is currently investigating local telcos KT, SK Telecom, LG Uplus and Sejong Telecom on suspicions of collusion in a circuit line business project.KT has notified
March 27, 2019
-
Hyundai AutoEver shares to be listed on Kospi this week
Shares of Hyundai AutoEver will be traded on the country’s main stock market this week, the bourse operator said on March 27. The ICT service provider of the world’s fifth-largest automotive conglomerate will go public on the Kospi on March 28 after the Korea Exchange gave the nod to its listing. The initial public offering price was set at 48,000 won ($42.3) per share, and the listing could generate around 1 trillion won in fresh capital, according to the KRX. Hyundai AutoEver
March 27, 2019
-
[Contribution] In investments, managing 'emotional returns' is key to staying on track
The Korea Herald publishes a regular contribution series written by senior investment strategists at Standard Chartered Group Wealth Management. – Ed.Early this year, our investment committee members went on the road to present our 2019 Outlook to our clients across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe, as we do every year. One of the key messages that we have constantly communicated over the years is the importance of diversification. While we get the sense that some of our investors
March 26, 2019
-
Shinhan Bank’s new CEO pledges two-track globalization strategy
Shinhan Bank’s newly appointed CEO Jin Ok-dong on Tuesday pledged a two-track strategy for the bank’s global push, calling for the formation of strong business assets in key currency markets such as the US and Japan while citing plans to build a locally competitive presence in emerging markets. “I believe in a two-track strategy for the bank’s global expansion,” Jin said in his inaugural press conference at Shinhan Bank’s headquarters in Seoul. “One tra
March 26, 2019
-
Mirae Asset to expand presence in Asia: founder says in letter to employees
South Korea’s Mirae Asset will make a foray into the Japanese market by the end of the year, while expanding its business in China and India, its founder said in an email to employees on Monday. “Demand for global financial products will only continue to grow,” wrote Park Hyeon-joo from New York, on his last leg of a business trip around the world, in his first letter to the employees in two years. After stepping down as chairman of Mirae Asset Financial Group in Korea las
March 26, 2019
-
Viva Republica finalizes consortium for internet-only Toss Bank
Viva Republica, operator of mobile payment app Toss, said Monday that it has finalized a consortium to establish Toss Bank, the third internet-only bank here.The consortium will consist of Silicon Valley-based venture capital Altos Ventures, Goodwater Capital, Brazil’s Nubank, UK fintech player Revolut, and the Korea Electronic Certification Authority, the company said in a press release.While Viva Republica will hold a 67 percent stake -- as a financial operator, not as an information and
March 25, 2019
-
Hyundai AutoEver’s IPO to help Hyundai Motor heir solidify control
Hyundai Motor Group’s IT services unit plans to go public on South Korea’s main bourse this week, which is expected to turn the odds further in favor of heir apparent Chung Eui-sun, according to analysts Monday. Hyundai AutoEver won approval for an initial public offering on the Kospi bourse earlier this year with the price per share being set at 48,000 won ($42.28). It aims to raise around 168.4 billion won through the listing scheduled for Friday. The IPO is expected to play a key
March 25, 2019
-
SsangYong Motor now at center of credit card transaction fee dispute
SsangYong Motor is set to terminate its contracts with South Korean credit card companies on Tuesday if the two sides fail to conclude their card transaction fee negotiations before the due date, marking another high-profile standoff between a large firm and local card providers here. The automaker has notified Shinhan Card, Samsung Card and Lotte Card -- among the biggest credit and debit card providers in Korea -- that their business ties will end if they do not agree to its transaction fee pr
March 25, 2019
-
Seoul shares expected to move in tight range next week
South Korean stocks are expected to move in a relatively tight range as investors are set to digest the U.S. Federal Reserve‘s rate decision amid ongoing trade talks between Washington and Beijing, analysts here said Saturday. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,186.95 points on Friday, up from 2,176.11 the previous week. The KOSPI started on strong note on hopes for headway in trade talks between the United States and China. The bourse, however, slipped fo
March 23, 2019
-
Seoul stocks end almost flat after choppy trading
South Korean stocks ended almost flat after a choppy trading session on Friday, with foreigners scooping up tech shares, offsetting a massive selling spree by institutions, analysts said. The Korean won fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index inched up 2.07 points, or 0.09 percent, to close at 2,186.95. Trade volume was moderately light at 291 million shares worth 4.85 trillion won ($4.29 billion), with the number of losers outnumbering gainers 517 to 301.Ins
March 22, 2019
-
BNP Paribas striving to promote sustainable finance in S. Korea
BNP Paribas SA, France‘s biggest bank, will strive hard to promote its sustainable finance in South Korea as it seeks to arrange more funds for projects that make a positive impact on the environment and society, a company executive said Friday. Sustainable finance has been a watchword for investors that integrate environmental, social and governance issues into their investment decisions. Since a UN climate deal was signed in Paris in 2015, pension funds and financial firms around the wor
March 22, 2019
-
Woori Bank sells 2.7% stake in Woori Financial to FIIs
Woori Bank, one of South Korea’s major commercial banks, said Friday that it has sold 2.7 percent of its stake in Woori Financial Holdings to foreign institutional investors in a block deal during off-trading hours.The bank has sold 18,346,782 shares to FIIs. As a result, Woori Financial Holdings’ stake ownership by foreign investors has increased from 27.5 percent -- as of Feb. 13, the day of its public listing -- to 30.2 percent.According to the bank, the block sale attracted high
March 22, 2019
-
KEB Hana Bank’s new CEO pledges digitalization, globalization as core mission
KEB Hana Bank’s newly appointed CEO Ji Sung-kyoo on Thursday pledged to step up efforts to transform the South Korean commercial bank into a data-driven company backed by digitalization, while ramping up its global business push to widen its sources of income beyond the domestic market. “To become a trusted global bank, we want to go forward embracing digitalization as our left wing and globalization as our right wing,” Ji said in his inaugural press conference held at KEB Han
March 21, 2019
-
Shinhan drops out of internet-only bank consortium led by Viva Republica
Shinhan Financial Group, a major banking group in South Korea, has dropped out of the internet-only bank consortium led by Viva Republica, the operator of the popular mobile money transfer app Toss. Viva Republica said Thursday that “Shinhan Financial has conclusively decided to not participate in the fintech firm’s consortium to establish an internet-only bank, due to differences in business direction.” According to the financial technology startup, since the two parties sign
March 21, 2019
-
How did local coffee chain Terarosa secure impact investment?
Terarosa, a coffee chain based in Gangneung,a city in the province of Gangwon, on the east coast of South Korea, has secured investment from the country’s leading impact venture fund that invest in companies creating soical innovations. The joint fund set up by Crevisse Partners and Lime Asset Management called Crevisse-Lime Impact Venture Fund decided to invest in the 15-year-old coffee chain that has 14 outlets around the country, an official at Crevisse told The Investo
March 20, 2019
-
Mirae Asset Global seeks to build balanced global portfolio
Mirae Asset Global Investments is seeking to further solidify its presence in the overseas financial markets by strengthening its global portfolio. The South Korea-based asset management company has made bold moves in recent years and left footprints both in advanced and developing markets. One example was its decision to acquire Global X, a US-based sponsor of exchange-traded funds, in 2018. It also set up a joint venture with a Vietnamese state-run investment corporation and became the f
March 20, 2019
-
Deloitte Anjin plummets down in ranking by size
EY Han Young, the fourth of South Korea’s so-called Big Four accounting firms, outran Deloitte Anjin in employee strength for the first time last year and rose to No. 3 in ranking, data showed Wednesday.It also narrowed down the gap in sales, poised to clinch the game while the rival company struggles to recover from the spillover of an extensive accounting rigging scandal.According to the Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the number of accountants at EY Han Young stood at
March 20, 2019