Retail investors' stock ownership in Samsung Elec surpasses 10%

Retail investors' stock ownership in Samsung Electronics Co., South Korea's most valuable company, surpassed 10 percent for the first time as they went bargain hunting for its shares amid the COVID-19 pandemic last year, industry data showed Sunday. Individual investors owned a total of 65.3 million common shares of Samsung Electronics as of Friday, accounting for 10.1 percent of the total, according to industry data. The world's largest memory chip and smartphone vendor is valued at 486.5 tr

May 2, 2021

S. Korea to partially lift ban on short selling after 14 months

South Korea's financial regulator is set to partially lift its ban on short selling of listed stocks this week, about 14 months after it imposed it to cope with a stock market rout triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Starting Monday, the ban on 200 large-cap firms listed on the main KOSPI and 150 firms listed on the secondary KOSDAQ will be lifted, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said. A total of 917 stocks are listed on the KOSPI, and 1,470 stocks are listed on the KOSDAQ. A ban o

May 2, 2021

NFT to stick around with support from wider population: experts

Nonfungible tokens, widely known as NFTs, will survive a second wave and, even more, thrive as the public increasingly embraces this digital asset that has become more understandable and tangible, advocates said. Gathering for a panel session held by accelerator SparkLabs, industry experts from the US and Korea said Thursday that, unlike in 2017, there are more use cases of NFTs and people adopting their use. First appearing in 2014, an NFT is a blockchain-based nonduplicable digital certi

April 30, 2021

Early-stage investors say not just crypto but also blockchain becoming mainstream

Blockchain technology -- not just the cryptocurrencies that rely on it -- is becoming mainstream, as evidenced in the recent market debut of US cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and nonfungible tokens gaining popularity, said advocates of digital assets on Thursday. “There are many promising blockchain companies but they are overshadowed by cryptocurrencies (for now),” said Lee Han-joo, the co-CEO of SparkLabs, a leading South Korean accelerator, at the company‘s demo day that

April 30, 2021

Seoul stocks down for 4th day on virus woes, short selling uncertainties

South Korean stocks slumped for the fourth consecutive day Friday as investors remained concerned over coronavirus situation and the upcoming lifting of a ban on short selling. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 26.21 points, or 0.83 percent, to close at 3,147.86 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.3 billion shares worth some 18.7 trillion won ($16.8 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 534 to 339. Foreigner

April 30, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on virus woes

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday amid concerns of the spreading new coronavirus cases. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) fell 5.82 points, or 0.18 percent, to 3,168.25 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a muted start as the country's social distancing scheme will be extended by three more weeks ahead of holidays next month. South Korea's industrial output increased 0.8 percent in March on-month, slowing from a 2.1 percent growth in F

April 30, 2021

Retail investors pump up W81tr into SK unit’s IPO

South Korea’s amateur investors poured out record amounts of cash -- nearly 81 trillion won ($73.1 billion) -- to obtain new shares of SK ie technology, a wholly owned battery materials subsidiary under SK Innovation, in its two-day public subscription for an initial public offering. According to data compiled by underwriters, small domestic traders had placed some 80.9 trillion won in deposits by the deadline of 4 p.m. on Thursday, setting a record in stock market history here. SK Group

April 29, 2021

BC Card takes over Vietnamese POS firm

South Korean credit card issuer BC Card said Thursday that it has acquired a 100 percent stake of Vietnamese point of sale terminal firm Wirecard Vietnam in a bid to increase its foothold in the Southeast Asian market. The newly acquired company, the largest POS system supplier in Vietnam, offers payment terminals to 40 banks and payment services firms operating locally. As the company has software development units under its wing, it can offer tailored payment systems to its customers, whi

April 29, 2021

Seoul stocks down for 3rd day on profit-taking

South Korean stocks slumped for the third consecutive day Thursday as investors sold stocks to lock in gains despite the US Federal Reserve's soothing comments. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 7.4 points, or 0.23 percent, to close at 3,174.07 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.2 billion shares worth some 18.8 trillion won ($17 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 472 to 381. Foreigners sold a net 14 bill

April 29, 2021

[From the scene] For short selling newbies in Korea, simulated trading is a must

South Korea is set to partially lift a 14-month ban on short selling, the longest such ban in the world, on Monday, but on one condition -- obligating investors new to the trading strategy to take a half-hour online class and try simulated investments. The mini-lecture provided by the Korea Financial Investment Association informs would-be investors of the difference between a naked short and a covered short. It highlights that investors have limited returns from short sales but theoretically n

April 29, 2021

Kakao's finance arms up IPO drive as disruptive tech goes mainstream

Less than two weeks after Kakao Bank submitted a listing application to the Korea Exchange, Kakao Pay, another finance arm of South Korean internet giant Kakao, followed suit earlier this week. Such a back-to-back announcement of their plans for initial public offerings and listing on Korea’s stock market highlights disruptive technologies that are going mainstream in the domestic financial industry and challenges that traditional banking groups here may face. Each company’s enterp

April 29, 2021

Samsung family to get massive credit loans for inheritance tax payment

Children of the late Samsung chairman are set to receive massive loans from local lenders to pay more than 12 trillion won ($10.8 billion) in inheritance taxes, the largest-ever amount in the country’s history, according to industry sources on Thursday.  Two domestic commercial banks, which were not identified, will issue credit loans of hundreds of billions of won to the family of the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee, later in the day, they said.  The decisions were m

April 29, 2021

Local crypto exchanges reopen offline customer centers

Amid the increasing intensity in the cryptocurrency markets, local exchanges are reintroducing offline customer centers. Coinone, one of the four largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, reopened its in-person customer center in Seoul, the company said Thursday. Coinone initially launched its customer center in September 2017, but closed its doors two years later to focus on other businesses. The recent surge in interest in cryptocurrency transactions and as well an influx of custome

April 29, 2021

Trade terms up for 12th straight month in March

South Korea's terms of trade rose for the 12th consecutive month in March, as exports have shown signs of a strong recovery, central bank data showed Thursday. The nation's net terms-of-trade index for goods -- a gauge of trade terms -- increased 3.6 percent last month from a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the 12th straight month of an on-year rise since April last year, when the trade terms logged the first on-year hike in over two years on

April 29, 2021

7 more firms subject to tougher filing regulation: watchdog

South Korea's corporate watchdog said Thursday seven more major firms are required to disclose detailed information on their management and business activities. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) unveiled its new updated list of large business groups with assets of 5 trillion won ($4.5 billion) or more to face tougher filing regulations. The number of such firms stood at 71, with e-commerce giant Coupang, Korea Aerospace Industries Co. (KAI), the country's sole aircraft manufacturer, and s

April 29, 2021

SK IE Technology set to draw record-high IPO subscriptions

SK IE Technology Co. (SKIET), a battery materials subsidiary of SK Innovation Co., is set to draw a record-breaking subscription rate from retail investors for its initial public offering (IPO) on the Seoul bourse, the company's IPO managers said Thursday. SKIET, which makes lithium-ion battery separators used in electric vehicles, has allowed individual investors to subscribe to up to 5.34 million new common shares to be sold under the IPO on the main KOSPI market on May 11. The battery mater

April 29, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on Fed's comments, earnings

South Korean stocks opened higher Thursday, backed by the US Federal Reserve's reiteration to keep its asset-buying schemes and earnings surprises from major companies that increased investors' appetite for risky assets. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 14.32 points, or 0.45 percent, to 3,195.79 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The stock index came to a strong start as the US Federal Reserve said Wednesday (local time) it would not roll back its asset-buying progr

April 29, 2021

Seoul stocks dip 1% ahead of FOMC meeting results

South Korean stocks dipped 1 percent on Wednesday as foreign investors offloaded local stocks to cash in recent gains ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 33.95 points, or 1.06 percent, to close at 3,181.47 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.4 billion shares worth some 18 trillion won ($16.2 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 699 to 193. Foreigne

April 28, 2021

South Korea gets ready for short selling under watchful eyes

South Korea resumes the short selling of stocks Monday, ending a 14-month ban imposed to protect investors from a sudden market fall triggered by the pandemic.  Despite the government’s cautious moves -- leaving some restrictions in place even after the temporary ban expires -- retail investors are still wary over a possible drop in stock prices, according to industry sources Wednesday. The regulator’s decision to permit short selling within limits starting May 3 came after

April 28, 2021

Nexon joins Tesla in bitcoin bet

Korean-Japanese game maker Nexon on Tuesday said it spent $100 million to purchase bitcoin, joining companies like Tesla and MicroStrategy who bet on cryptocurrencies. The company listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange said it purchased 1,717 bitcoins at $58,226 on average. Bitcoin was being traded at $54,910 as of 1:35 p.m. on Wednesday. “In the current economic environment, we believe bitcoin offers long-term stability and liquidity while maintaining the value of our cash for future investme

April 28, 2021