South Korean retail stock investors ‘at risk’ from foreign selling spree

The routine of South Korean retail investors picking up massively offloaded shares by foreigners has continued since last week, but experts have been raising concerns over growing risks of their buying spree if the market remains bearish for a while. According to the Korea Exchange Wednesday, offshore investors pushed for a selling spree Tuesday for a sixth consecutive session since Aug. 9 on the nation’s main bourse market, dumping a net 7.46 trillion won ($6.38 billion). They offload

Aug. 18, 2021

BlackRock Real Assets to acquire Korean solar power operator

BlackRock Real Assets said Wednesday it has signed an agreement to acquire an undisclosed amount of equity stake in South Korean solar aggregator and operator Brite Energy Partners. The US-based investment firm aims to inject more than $100 million capital over time to fund the acquisition and construction of solar assets of over 350 megawatts in power generation capacity. All projects developed and acquired by Brite Energy Partners are expected to be fully contracted under 20-year terms with K

Aug. 18, 2021

Seoul stocks snap 8-session losing streak ahead of Fed's minutes release

South Korean stocks rose Wednesday, snapping an eight-session losing streak as investors expected the US. Federal minutes would cause little ripples on tapering of stimulus policies. The Korean won rose against the US. dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 15.84 points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 3,158.93 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 614 million shares worth some 16.5 trillion won ($14.1 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 645 to 212.

Aug. 18, 2021

Bithumb enjoys robust growth in H1

Bithumb Korea, the operator of a local cryptocurrency exchange, saw a 1,100 percent jump in its net profit, according to a financial statement of Vident, the largest shareholder of the exchange on Wednesday. Bithumb’s revenue in the first half of the year stood at 608.7 billion won ($520.9 million), soaring 507 percent on-year, while its net profit rose a whopping 1,100 percent to 603.3 billion won, the data showed. Kim Sung-kwon, a press officer at Vident, said Bithumb‘s annual

Aug. 18, 2021

NPS sells entire General Electric stake in Q2

The National Pension Service, South Korea’s public pension scheme, divested its entire 11.5 million shares in General Electric as of end-June, a regulatory filing showed Wednesday. The world’s third-largest pension fund no longer held a share in Boston-based conglomerate General Electric, which was the 66th-largest stake it built with a $151.6 million valuation in March, according to quarterly filings submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission. GE gained a shareholder

Aug. 18, 2021

Danggeun Market wins unicorn status with $162m funding

Danggeun Market, operator of hyperlocal e-commerce app Karrot, said Wednesday it has fetched a $162 million funding in a series D round with an enterprise valuation of $2.7 billion. The latest round of funding, led by Hong Kong-based later-stage venture capital house DST Global, was joined by Aspex Management and Reverent Partners. Also taking part in the fundraising were existing investors Goodwater Capital, Altos Ventures, SoftBank Ventures Asia, Kakao Ventures, Strong Ventures and Capstone

Aug. 18, 2021

Seoul stocks open slightly lower on Afghanistan uncertainties

South Korean stocks opened slightly lower Wednesday, tracking a stock plunge on Wall Street that stemmed from reports on Taliban's earlier-than-expected control of the Afghanistan capital. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 2.18 points, or 0.07 percent, to 3,140.91 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a choppy start as investors digest the impact of Taliban's seizure of Kabul and the frenzy at the airport. Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial

Aug. 18, 2021

KakaoBank’s net profit jumps 156% in H1

KakaoBank, the country’s largest internet-only bank by user numbers, on Tuesday said it recorded a 156 percent jump in net profit in the first half of this year, backed by increased interest income and its platform business. The company’s net profit in the January-June period stood at 115 billion won ($97 million) including 69.3 billion won in the second quarter. Its operating profit was 133.8 billion won. The mobile-only lender, which debuted on the stock market Aug. 6 as the

Aug. 17, 2021

Seoul stocks down for 8th day on disappointing Chinese economic data

South Korean stocks retreated for an eighth straight session Tuesday as disappointing Chinese economic data raised concerns about a slowdown in global economic recovery. The Korean Won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) slumped 28.2 points, or 0.89 percent, to close at 3,143.09 points. Trading volume was high at about 680 million shares worth some 21.9 trillion won ($18.6 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 786 to 117. Foreigners sold a

Aug. 17, 2021

Early-morning delivery platforms rush into IPO race

E-commerce platform companies that gained popularity for their early-morning delivery services in South Korea are rushing to tap the local stock market, which is enjoying high liquidity and increased investors’ appetite for initial public offering shares. Competition among early-morning delivery platforms -- Shinsegae Group’s online mall arm SSG, Market Kurly and Oasis -- is becoming fierce, with some market watchers believing those who go public ahead of their rivals may have

Aug. 17, 2021

FSS to launch probe into e-payment providers amid Mergepoint scandal

South Korea’s financial watchdog will launch an investigation into electronic payment service providers and their operations amid growing concerns over consumer protection in a row involving local discount app operator Mergeplus. The Financial Supervisory Service has been under fire for failing to monitor risks and eliminate legal gray areas on the back of fast-growing electronic payment services in recent months. Angry customers swarmed Mergeplus’ headquarters in Seoul last week

Aug. 17, 2021

Dunamu to unveil travel rule solution next month

Dunamu, the operator of Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, on Tuesday said it planned to unveil its own “travel rule” solution in September through its blockchain technology research arm Lambda256. The travel rule is a global standard imposed by the Financial Action Task Force, an intergovernmental anti-money laundering watchdog, on virtual asset service providers such as cryptocurrency exchanges and digital wallet providers. The country’s virtual asset serv

Aug. 17, 2021

Citibank Korea to confirm retail biz exit plan next week

Citibank Korea is likely to make its long-awaited announcement for its retail business exit plan on Aug. 26, after confirming the strategy at a scheduled board meeting, an industry source said Tuesday. The South Korean subsidiary of the US-based global banking giant had initially said it would confirm the plan in July, but the decision-making process was delayed on apparent conflicts of interest among the firm, its potential bidders and unionists. The firm is expected to decide whether it wil

Aug. 17, 2021

IFC names new regional director of East Asia and Pacific

The International Finance Corp., a member of the World Bank Group, said Tuesday that it has appointed Kim-See Lim as the new regional director of East Asia and the Pacific. The Malaysian national will lead investment and advisory operations across 18 countries including South Korea and oversee the IFC’s strategy in the region. “Given the devastating impacts of the global pandemic, IFC will continue to focus on leveraging the private sector to foster a green, resilient and inclusiv

Aug. 17, 2021

NH NongHyup launches virtual Dokdo branch

South Korea’s NH NongHyup Bank said Tuesday it launched a virtual Dokdo branch, which customers can visit on its mobile app and subscribe to financial products tied to the nation’s easternmost islets. The virtual space, designed to celebrate the bank’s 60th anniversary, offers users of All One Bank app with Dokdo-themed environmental, social and governance-related financial products. Users can also visit a virtual gift shop where they can purchase popular “Dokdo shrimp

Aug. 17, 2021

Chinese top foreign buyers of Korean real estate

Amid the steady growth of property ownership by foreign nationals in South Korea, Chinese acquisition of real estate ranked first for the ninth consecutive year, industry data showed Tuesday. According to data from real estate app company Zigbang, foreign-owned real estate accounted for 0.69 percent of the total property purchases across the nation, as of August, continuing an upward trend from 2010, when it posted 0.2 percent. Among the foreign buyers, Chinese purchased the largest volume of

Aug. 17, 2021

Citibank Korea to decide on exit plan next week

Citibank Korea Inc., the South Korean unit of Citigroup Inc., will decide on its exit plan for its retail banking unit next week, an industry source said Tuesday. Citibank Korea will hold a board meeting Aug. 26 during which the lender will confirm how to sell the retail banking division. In April, Citigroup said it will exit consumer banking operations in 13 markets, including South Korea, as part of its global business reorganization. Four financial firms have conducted a due diligence of C

Aug. 17, 2021

Seoul stocks open slightly higher on tech rebound, financial gains

South Korean stocks opened a tad higher Tuesday as tech large caps showed signs of a rebound from their weeklong plunge, in addition to strong advances by financial stocks. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 1.63 points, or 0.05 percent, to 3,172.92 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The key stock index opened with mild gains as the country's two largest chipmakers rose after tumbling on pessimism about a future price fall of DRAMs. Gains by financial and ban

Aug. 17, 2021

IBK woes continue in Indonesia

The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea’s Indonesian subsidiary, its largest ASEAN business, fell deeper into the red in the second quarter, while its Korean rivals are raking in robust profits from their businesses there. Flagging warning signs for its annual performance this year, Bank IBK Indonesia reported a net loss of 14.3 billion won ($12.2 million), failing to extend its growth momentum gained in the first quarter of 1.2 billion won in net profit. “In the early stages, net lo

Aug. 16, 2021

Samsung Asset’s hedge fund arm merger falls through

Samsung Asset Management has withdrawn its plan to merge its hedge fund arm following a yearslong delay since the announcement, a filing showed Monday. The proposed merger of Samsung Asset and its wholly owned Samsung Hedge Asset Management was scrapped with the consent of the parties concerned, according to the filing submitted to the Korea Financial Investment Association. The merger plan was announced in April 2020 and was designed to be completed by August the same year. But the plan has

Aug. 16, 2021