[KH Biz Forum] Pandemic fostered direct cross-border e-commerce

Cross-border e-commerce allows sellers to meet end users directly in the global market, quickly respond to consumers’ feedback and sell their products in more marketplaces, head of Amazon’s Global Selling Korea Lee Sung-han said Tuesday. He said more business owners should go online and branch out into other countries despite the COVID-19 crisis, as he touted Amazon’s support for such moves. “Crisis breeds opportunity. As noted by experts, instead of only focusing on

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Krafton selects 5 underwriters to seek IPO in 2021

Krafton said Tuesday it has designated five underwriters to publicly list the company in 2021. According to the South Korean game company best known for the shooter game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Mirae Asset Daewoo is the lead underwriter while co-underwriters include Credit Suisse Securities, Citigroup Global Markets Korea Securities, JP Morgan and NH Investment & Securities. “Our goal is to list the company in Korea next year. After selecting underwriters, we will make

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Posco International selected as top ESG firm for 2nd year

Posco International was selected as the grand prize winner in the ESG segment at the 2020 Outstanding Companies Awards hosted by the Korea Corporate Governance Service, the firm said Tuesday. The firm said its efforts and achievements in promoting sustainable management had been recognized by winning the prize for two consecutive years. The KCGS is an organization that conducts evaluation, research and surveys on corporate governance, social responsibility and environmental management. I

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Kakao’s financial subsidiaries gear up for 2021 IPOs

Two financial subsidiaries of South Korean mobile messenger giant Kakao are taking a step toward initial public offerings next year, picking up an additional underwriter and securing investments from a global private equity fund, according to local investment banking sources Tuesday. Kakao Pay, set for an IPO during the first half of next year, has chosen Goldman Sachs as one of its underwriters, while KB Securities selected an underwriter last month, the officials said. The details of the d

MarketOct. 27, 2020

[KH Biz Forum] Faster changes, greater chances in post-COVID-19 era

South Korean business representatives, policymakers and government officials gathered at the annual The Korea Herald Biz Forum in its third iteration Tuesday to share insights on changing consumer patterns, business regulations and new economic growth engines in the post-COVID-19 world. Under the theme “Contact less, connect more,” this year’s forum was held at The Shilla in Seoul and was livestreamed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the speakers were Kim Jae-shin, vice c

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Samsung SDS marks record-high sales in Q3

Samsung SDS, Samsung Group‘s IT service unit, announced the Tuesday that company’s sales marked an all-time high in the third quarter this year. The sales of Samsung SDS during the July-September period reached 2.96 trillion won ($2.6 billion), up by 11.7 percent on-year, according to a regulatory filing posted Tuesday. Compared to the second quarter this year, the sales went up by 15.6 percent, the company added.  The firm‘s operating profit during the three-month pe

TechnologyOct. 27, 2020

W3tr paid in dividends to late Samsung chairman‘s family since 2014: reports

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

MarketOct. 27, 2020

[KH Biz Forum] Figuring out future consumers, loyalty-based biz model

What will consumers want in the future, and how can companies lure them? Samsung Electronics’ innovation and startup investment arm, Samsung NEXT, is delving into the behavior of future consumers and preparing to establish new business models to attract them, said Jamie Choi, vice president at Samsung Electronics.  “In comparison with consumers in the past, today’s consumers seek diversity, empowerment and expression of one’s value,” Choi said during her lec

TechnologyOct. 27, 2020

[KH Biz Forum] Future of health care amid COVID-19

Digital transformation and COVID-19 are reshaping health care on an irreversible course, said Choi Yoon-sup, managing partner of Digital Healthcare Partners at The Korea Herald Biz Forum held Tuesday at The Shilla in Seoul. 　The forum, held under the tagline of “Contact less, connect more,” had speakers deliver talks on business outlook in the post-COVID-19 era. Choi’s speech outlined digital health care trends surrounding telemedicine, digital therapeutics and medical artifi

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

[KH Biz Forum] Korea to prepare delicate legal push to keep e-commerce market fair

Kim Jae-shin, vice chairperson of the Fair Trade Commission of South Korea, said legislation regarding the growing platform businesses would continue to evolve to secure fair trade and competition during the Korea Herald Biz Forum held Tuesday. Kim said the new legislation regarding the ecommerce market would be introduced in South Korea as the market was rapidly expanding, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a previous report by the government, the e-commerce transactions,

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

LG International awarded for outstanding ESG efforts

LG International has been recognized for its practices in environmental responsibility, social responsibility and governance at the 2020 Outstanding Companies Awards hosted by the Korea Corporate Governance Service, the company said Tuesday. According to the commodity trading and mining affiliate of LG Group, it received an “A” ESG rating from the KCGS, an improvement from a B+ from a year earlier. Specifically, LG International was given an A in environmental responsibility, an

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Coupang claims facts distorted over death of contract worker

Coupang, an e-commerce giant, issued a statement Tuesday claiming that facts surrounding the death of a contract worker were being distorted. Denying claims that the short-term worker had died of overwork, Coupang said it will take strong actions against those who spread distortions. On Oct. 12, the short-term contract worker, who worked at Coupang’s Daegu Logistics Center, was found dead after returning home at around 6 a.m. Over this, there have been claims that the worker died of ov

ConsumerOct. 27, 2020

Samsung SDI's Q3 operating profit spikes 61.1%

Samsung SDI enjoyed a 61.1 percent surge in revenue to 267.4 billion won ($237.4 billion) in the third quarter, fueled by a strong performance of its battery business, according to a regulatory filing posted on Tuesday. The South Korean battery giant recorded 3.08 trillion won and 240.7 billion won in revenue and net profit, a 20.2 percent and 10.7 percent jump in the same period. The company’s booming battery business registered a revenue of 2.3 trillion won, a 22 percent spike compa

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

[KH Biz Forum] ‘Coronavirus didn’t change anything. It only accelerated existing trends’

Some say the coronavirus has changed everything. But Kim Ran-do, a renowned scholar on fast-emerging trends in South Korea, said the change was already happening and the pandemic has only accelerated it. At The Korea Herald Biz Forum: “Contact less, connect more,” held Tuesday at The Shilla in Seoul, the professor of consumer studies at Seoul National University said the COVID-19 outbreak has changed the speed of today’s trends but not their direction. “In 2018, I coi

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Unity’s game engine expands market to VR/AR, but is it profitable?

Unity, a widely used game engine used to create multiple-dimensional, virtual reality, and augmented reality games, has emerged as a new platform for rising industries to test their new technologies such as self-driving cars in virtual reality. The engine is used in other industries as well, such as films, engineering and construction. But despite its outreach to industries seeking technological transformations, the company faces a dilemma over its subscription-based business model. Rega

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Seoul shares down on virus concerns, US election uncertainties

South Korean shares closed lower Tuesday, falling for the second straight session, amid concerns of a global resurgence in COVID-19 cases and growing uncertainties over the US presidential election. The Korean won continued to rise against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 13.07 points, or 0.56 percent, to close at 2,330.84. Trading volume was moderate at 643.2 million shares worth 9.9 trillion won ($8.8 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 555

MarketOct. 27, 2020

ETAS Korea partners with KPMG on automobile security business

ETAS Korea said Tuesday it has agreed to cooperate with KPMG Samjong Accounting on automobile security business. In June 2020, the UNECE’s World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations recently adopted a regulation on cyber security to mandate automakers and auto part producers to put in place a system to tackle security risks prior to putting vehicles on the market. UNECE stands for United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. Accordingly, all new cars to be registered in Eu

MobilityOct. 27, 2020

FSC chief stresses consumer protection, digital transition in COVID era

Financial Services Commission Chairman Eun Sung-soo on Tuesday stressed the importance of consumer protection in the coronavirus era amid surging financial investment activities by retail investors taking advantage of ultralow interest rates. “Consumer protection is more important than ever as retail investors have increasingly invested in high-profit financial products amid the low interest rate environment triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Financial Services Commission C

EconomyOct. 27, 2020

Send-off ceremony for late Samsung chief to be held Wednesday, mourners in queue

Samsung Group on Tuesday was preparing for the send-off ceremony for its late chief Lee Kun-hee as more leaders from business and political communities mourned the death of one of South Korea's most influential tycoons. Lee died Sunday at age 78, more than six years after being hospitalized for a heart attack. The funeral ceremony for Lee, scheduled for Wednesday, is expected to start with eulogies featuring his decadeslong commitment to the country's top conglomerate and his achievements, tho

IndustryOct. 27, 2020

Citibank Korea officially names first female CEO

   Yoo Myung-soon, incumbent interim chief executive officer of Citibank Korea, was officially tapped to lead the bank as the first female chief to lead the US lender’s local unit, officials said Tuesday. The South Korean subsidiary of the New York-based bank held a general meeting of stockholders and the board of directors early in the morning to approve and confirm Yoo’s appointment. Yoo, who previously served as the bank’s senior executive vice president, was

MarketOct. 27, 2020