Hana Financial set to begin merger process in earnest next week

Hana Financial Group Inc., South Korea's third-largest banking group by assets, is rolling up its sleeves to begin the process of merging its two flagship banks in earnest next week, a company official said Wednesday.Hana Financial has tried to merge Hana Bank and the Korea Exchange Bank since it acquired the KEB from U.S. buyout fund Lone Star in 2012. Its efforts have dragged on for years as the KEB had strongly opposed the merger until recently, citing its earlier promise to remain independen

July 15, 2015

Samsung most reputable tech firm in U.S.: report

South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. ranks as the most reputable technology company in the United States, a report showed Sunday, on the back of its strong products and services appealing to American consumers.  Samsung, the world's largest smartphone maker, has topped such tech peers as Microsoft, Google and Intel in terms of products and services, citizenship and governance, according to the report by U.S.-based corporate appraiser Reputation Institute. Samsung ranked eighth last year.     He

July 5, 2015

U.S. hedge fund appeals court's refusal to stop Samsung merger

A U.S. hedge fund, opposing a proposed merger of two Samsung Group units, has filed an appeal against a Seoul court's dismissal of its request to block the deal, the latest in a series of legal rows unfolding against South Korea's top conglomerate over the high-profile merger.   Nexus, a Seoul-based law firm representing Elliott Associate L.P., submitted a notice of appeal Friday to the Seoul Central District Court, according to the court.    The objection came as the hedge fund has been seeking

July 3, 2015

Samsung wins trademark for 'S6 EDGE+'

Samsung Electronics Co. is presumed to be putting more focus on its latest smartphone, the Galaxy S6 Edge, the variant of the Galaxy S6, documents showed Thursday, as it won a trademark for the "S6 EDGE+" earlier this week.  According to the documents posted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Samsung Electronics has won the trademark, which indicates that the South Korean tech giant may roll out an updated edition of the quirky flagship smartphone that has drawn keen attention fro

July 2, 2015

Bakery brand Paris Baguette opens 2nd store in Paris

South Korean confectionery giant Paris Baguette said Wednesday it has opened its second Paris store in the city's Opera district, a move that comes as the company is stepping up its overseas expansion.  The opening comes roughly 11 months after it opened its first Paris store in the Chatelet district of the French capital, which is in the vicinity of key tourist attractions, such as Notre Dame Cathedral and Louvre Museum.  "We opened our second branch in France at an earlier-than-expected schedu

July 1, 2015

Cheil Industries pitches for merger deal with higher dividends

Cheil Industries Inc., the de facto holding company of the country's top conglomerate Samsung Group, pledged Tuesday to deliver more dividends to shareholders, as it seeks to convince investors ahead of a crucial shareholders meeting for a proposed merger with the group's construction arm.  The company at the top of the group's cobweb-like governance structure also promised to set up a committee tasked with boosting shareholders value and improving governance after its 8.9 trillion-won ($7.92 bi

June 30, 2015

Orion submits bid for Homeplus

SEOUL (Yonhap) – South Korean confectionery maker Orion Corp. said Thursday it has submitted a bid for Homeplus, the local unit of British retailer TESCO."(We) have submitted a preliminary bid for the Homeplus acquisition to the potential seller," the company said in a regulatory filing posted after the stock market closing. Local media reported that private equity firms, such as Affinity Equity Partners, Carlyle Group and local buyout fund MBK Partners have also submitted bids to buy the countr

June 25, 2015

KB Financial to wrap up LIG takeover next week

KB Financial Group Inc., South Korea's No. 2 banking group by assets, said Friday it plans to wrap up its acquisition of LIG Insurance Co. next week in a move that is anticipated to bolster its non-banking profit.KB Financial said in a statement that it plans to close the deal in a temporary shareholder meeting scheduled for June 24 and rename the insurer KB Insurance.The plan comes after the U.S. Federal Reserve Board approved the group the right to operate as a financial holding company in the

June 19, 2015

Samsung, Elliot clash in court over merger plan

Lawyers for Samsung C&T Corp. and a U.S. hedge fund clashed in court Friday over a plan to merge the builder with another key affiliate of Samsung Group, with both sides sticking to their guns over the controversial move.The high-profile court battle came as Elliot Management applied for two court injunctions to block a May 26 offer by Cheil Industries Inc., Samsung's de facto holding firm, to take over Samsung C&T for 8.9 trillion won ($8.06 billion), claiming the deal is "unlawful and goes aga

June 19, 2015

iPhone tops customer satisfaction list in S. Korea

Apple Inc.'s iPhone has topped a customer satisfaction list for smartphones in South Korea, trumping Galaxy smartphones made by archrival Samsung Electronics Co., a report showed Thursday. The U.S. smartphone maker garnered 759 marks in terms of product satisfaction by local consumers at the end of 2014, according to the biennial report by Seoul-based Consumer Insight. Samsung Electronics was even beaten by its smaller home rival LG Electronics Inc., placing third with a score of 580. LG gained

June 18, 2015

Incheon airport to help run new Istanbul hub

The operator of Incheon International Airport, South Korea's main gateway, said Thursday it has signed a deal to provide operations consulting to the world's largest airport currently under construction in Turkey.Incheon International Airport Corp. said it has been chosen alongside Denmark's Copenhagen Airport for the 10.8 million euro ($12.3 million) project to provide consulting services to IGA, the operator of Istanbul New Airport, for the next five years. IIAC will take the lion share at a 5

June 18, 2015

Samsung inks MOU with U.S. broadcasters for digital TV biz

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday it has struck a deal with U.S. broadcasting companies to work together for the adoption of the next-generation broadcasting standard for digital TVs. It signed a memorandum of understanding with Pearl LLC and Sinclair Broadcast Group in Washington on Wednesday (U.S. time) to promote the Advanced Television System Committee 3.0, the company said in a statement. The ATSC 3.0 refers to a set of standards developed by the committee for di

June 18, 2015

Elliott turns up heat on Samsung over merger bid

A U.S. activist hedge fund on Thursday stepped up its offensive on Samsung Group's move to merge two key units, demanding the merger be carried out in such a way to properly reflect the interests of relevant shareholders.Elliott Management has challenged the 8.9 trillion-won ($7.95 billion) takeover bid by Cheil Industries Inc., the de facto holding company of Samsung, to buy construction arm Samsung C&T Corp., claiming that the deal undervalues the builder and is against shareholders' interests

June 18, 2015

Samsung-Elliot battle exposes vulnerability of chaebol firms

The battle between a U.S. hedge fund and Samsung Group over a proposed merger may not be the only such case as several other corporate giants have large foreign ownership that could also get in the way of managerial decisions, data showed Wednesday.Elliott Management is trying to block the proposed merger between Samsung C&T Co. and Cheil Industries Inc. via stake acquisition and legal action, saying the move does not serve in the best interest of shareholders.Samsung, which is preparing a third

June 17, 2015

Consortium eyes troubled handset maker Pantech

A court decision that gave approval to a local consortium's bid to acquire Pantech Co. will likely give the embattled handset maker an opportunity to rebuild its business after its recent sale attempts fell through due to lack of interest, market watchers said Wednesday.The Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday announced that the consortium led by Optis, a South Korean optical manufacturer, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Pantech, with the two sides set to complete the deal by Ju

June 17, 2015

Police raid builder, USFK site over alleged slush fund creation

Police said Tuesday that they have raided SK Engineering & Construction Co. and its construction site on a U.S. base in central South Korea over slush fund allegations involving a U.S. military official.The National Police Agency confiscated materials including account books and computer hard disks from the head office of SK E&C in Seoul and its work site at the U.S. Forces Korea base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, a police official said on condition of anonymity.An SK E&C subcontractor alleg

June 16, 2015

State tax office probing Daum Kakao: sources

The state tax office on Tuesday started an audit into Daum Kakao Corp., one of South Korea's leading Internet service companies, industry sources said.Some 50 investigators from the Seoul Regional Tax Office descended on Daum Kakao's office in Pangyo, south of Seoul, to conduct an on-site inspection, according to the sources. Daum Kakao operates South Korea's top mobile messenger, KakaoTalk, which has more than 35 million local users. It was unclear whether the latest audit is a regular one, whi

June 16, 2015

Analysts split over Samsung merger plan

Analysts are divided over the feasibility of Samsung Group's plan to merge its two key units, as the proposed merger deal faces a legal battle with a U.S. hedge fund trying to stop the move citing fairness of the deal and could entail huge costs, reports showed Tuesday. Elliott Management has opposed the 8.9 trillion won ($7.96 billion) offer announced late last month by Cheil Industries Inc., the de facto holding company of Samsung Group, to buy construction arm Samsung C&T Corp. in an all-stoc

June 16, 2015

S. Koreans buy Apple Watch from abroad ahead of local release

Apple Inc.'s new smartwatch is gaining popularity in South Korea with local customers purchasing the devices directly from overseas even before its official debut here slated for later this month, data showed Sunday.The number of foreign direct purchases of the Apple Watch Sport came to 181 in the May 26-June 12 period, according to the data compiled by the Korea Customs Service. The device is scheduled to be released here on June 26. Overseas direct shopping, or "jikgu" in Korean, refers to sho

June 14, 2015