[Market Close-up] Device shipment shortage unnerves Samsung Electronics investors

Concerns about electronic device shipments due to a global semiconductor component shortage is leaving retail stock investors unnerved as their net purchases of Samsung Electronics common shares worth 22.6 trillion won ($20 billion) so far this year appears to have barely yielded returns. Foreign investors, on the other hand, are fleeing South Korea‘s largest handset producer and semiconductor manufacturer. Samsung Electronics has been the most heavily sold stock by foreign investors yea

May 23, 2021

Banks skeptical of forging crypto alliance for real-name system

Some major South Korean financial conglomerates, including KB and Hana, have decided not to issue real-name bank accounts for virtual coin trading on local crypto exchanges, citing heavy accountability and hacking risks, according to news reports Sunday. A new bill passed at the National Assembly in March requires local crypto exchanges to meet anti-money laundering requirements, and utilize real-name bank accounts from commercial banks for crypto trading. Local banks also need to decide by th

May 23, 2021

SC Bank Korea launches mobile retirement planning services

Standard Chartered Bank Korea said Sunday it had launched a digital asset management service within its mobile banking application that helps its customers build a retirement portfolio. Through the new mobile platform, dubbed “retirement planning on the palm of your hand,” subscribers to SC Bank Korea’s mobile banking application can create a comprehensive financial plan to achieve retirement income goals. Customers can also receive useful information on how much money they mi

May 23, 2021

Revised law to allow confiscation of seed money in stock manipulation cases

Stock manipulators will face confiscations of not only illegal gains but also their seed money under a revised capital market law that seeks to raise the integrity of the market. The National Assembly on Friday approved a partial revision to the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act aimed at improving investor protection and preventing market manipulation. The updated law newly allows the confiscation of the assets used or offered to be used in stock manipulation schemes. Un

May 23, 2021

[Eye Plus] Last decades of Joseon era on show at Unhyeongung

Unhyeongung near Anguk Station on subway line No. 3 is surely not a major Joseon-era palace that appears prominently in tourist guide books. The relatively small complex that once belonged to Heungseon Daewongun, father of King Gojong, however, is worth a visit as it embodies the final years of the dynasty before losing power to Japanese intervention in early 20th century. Not only the dark history of the consequent fall of Joseon royal line, but also the house shows the everyday lives of the r

May 22, 2021

NPS chief vows to lead Korea’s ESG innovation

The chief of the National Pension Service, the country’s largest public pension fund, pledged Friday to take the lead in environmental, social and corporate governance investing, calling the fast-spreading global trend a must and not an option. “The NPS is fatefully engaged with the national economy. We now carry a more tremendous responsibility than ever. We have to play the role of a guide for Korea’s ESG, dubbed ‘K-ESG,’” Kim Yong-jin, the pension fund&rs

May 21, 2021

Bithumb dismisses concerns about fraud case

Bithumb, South Korea’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, shrugged off questions on Friday about a fraud case involving a major shareholder. Lee Jung-hoon, former chairman of Bithumb Korea -- the operator of crypto exchange Bithumb and Bithumb Holdings, which controls Bithumb Korea -- is currently under investigation in connection with fraud allegations. Due to a very complicated corporate structure, Lee reportedly holds a 65 percent stake in Bithumb Korea. In Oc

May 21, 2021

Seoul stocks finish lower on profit-taking

South Korean stocks closed in negative terrain on Friday as investors sold stocks to lock in profits. The Korean won rose against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 5.86 points, or 0.19 percent, to close at 3,156.42 points. Trading volume was moderate at about 787 million shares worth some 14.6 trillion won ($13 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 674 to 189. Foreigners sold a net 135 billion won, while retail investors purchased 59 billion won.

May 21, 2021

Seoul stocks open higher on hopes of economic rebound

South Korean stocks opened higher Friday on hopes for a quick economic rebound, backed by overnight gains on Wall Street and strong local exports data. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 26.77 points, or 0.85 percent, to 3,189.05 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a strong start, tracking a 1.77 percent gain on the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 finished up 0.55 percent and 1.06 percent, re

May 21, 2021

Cryptocurrency panic-selling wipes out W900tr in 24 hours

Cryptocurrency markets continued to experience a sellout on Thursday, triggered by a combination of negative news including China’s latest regulations. According to CoinMarketCap, a market data tracker, some 900 trillion won ($794 billion) worth of cryptocurrency was lost within less than 24 hours as of Wednesday night. That is twice as much as Samsung Electronics’ market capitalization, which stood at 474 trillion won Thursday. The price of a bitcoin was around 51 million won

May 20, 2021

Hyundai Investments close W490b fund for acquisition financing

Asset management firm Hyundai Investments on Thursday announced the closure of a new, 490 billion-won ($433 million) private fund dedicated to South Korea-focused acquisition financing for private equity clients. The fresh fund, closed on Tuesday, is a second installment of its kind to invest in senior debt, following a 230 billion-won fund created in February 2020. The first installment was fully invested a year after the fund close, financing private equity acquisitions of clients such as Mac

May 20, 2021

Redevelopment of Korea’s first multiuse building picks up pace

The planned redevelopment of Jwawon Shopping Center, the first mixed-use building in Seoul, has cleared another hurdle as state developer Korea Land & Housing Corporation was chosen to lead the project, local media reported on Thursday. Built in 1966 in Seodaemun-gu, the structure consists of retail shops and offices on lower floors and apartments on the top floor. Although it was graded with one of the lowest scores in a safety evaluation in March, which qualifies the dilapidated buildi

May 20, 2021

Global IBs raise Kospi target on solid earnings forecast

Despite adjustments in South Korea’s stock market since the nation’s main bourse crossed the 3,200-point mark this year, global investment banks JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley have painted a rosy outlook for the Kospi amid a solid corporate earnings forecast, reports showed Thursday. JP Morgan raised its yearly Kospi target to 3,500 from the previous estimate of 3,200, saying all sectors had recorded an earnings turnaround this year except for utilities. Especially considering the st

May 20, 2021

UBS names new country head for S. Korea

Swiss banking giant UBS said Thursday it has appointed Chang Sei-yoon, the incumbent head of the global markets division at UBS Securities Seoul, as its new country head for the group’s operations in South Korea.  “(Chang) has contributed greatly to UBS‘s growth in Korea and has a deep understanding of the Korean market and clients,” said Edmund Koh, president of UBS Asia Pacific, citing Chang’s more than 25 years of expertise in Korean financial markets. 

May 20, 2021

Seoul stocks open lower on early US tapering worries

South Korean stocks opened lower Thursday as investor sentiment turned risk-averse over the US tapering jitters that stemmed from the latest Federal Reserve minutes. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 11.99 points, or 0.38 percent, to 3,161.06 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. The KOSPI got off to a weak start amid foreign and institutional selling. Stocks fell tracking the US stock decline that was largely caused by the Federal Reserve's minutes suggesting

May 20, 2021

NPS, KIC bet on US bank, semiconductor stocks

South Korean institutional investors were seen betting big on the banking sector and semiconductor firms in the United States during the first quarter, filings showed Wednesday. The National Pension Service, the world’s third-largest pension fund, has amassed holdings in US financial services firms such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo, according to a filing submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The NPS, which bought 113,080 additional shares of JPMor

May 19, 2021

Korean institutional investors eye more foreign infrastructure assets

South Korean institutional investors are looking to increase their exposure to foreign alternative assets and diversify in terms of asset classes and destinations. This comes as more institutional investors here are venturing into asset classes that could stimulate post-pandemic recovery and a sustainable future, in their bid to achieve medium-risk, long-term investing through illiquid assets, according to a note to investors by KTB Investment & Securities on Wednesday. For example, the N

May 19, 2021

[CRYPTO FEVER] Amid mix of concern and hope, retail investors back on crypto rollercoaster

This is a part of a series of reports, analyses and interviews on the cryptocurrency market and its future. This is the first installment. -- Ed. After the crypto market crashed in 2018, Lee Ji-hoon, a 35-year-old office worker, kept his distance. But amid the recent market frenzy surrounding cryptocurrencies, Lee felt the urge to reopen an account he had nearly forgotten about for three years. As soon as the account was reopened at Bithumb’s offline customer center last week, he was i

May 19, 2021

Gold prices rise amid inflation concerns

Gold prices in South Korea have continued to gain as investors seek to park their money in safer destinations amid escalating inflation concerns, while high-risk cryptocurrency Bitcoin saw its price drop, data showed Wednesday.  On Tuesday, the price for a gram of gold rose 0.56 percent from the previous session to 68,200 won ($60.50) on the local bourse, maintaining an upward trend for the fourth consecutive day, according to the Korea Exchange. The figure was the highest since it hit a

May 19, 2021

Bithumb Korea’s net profit soars 876% in Q1

Bithumb Holdings, the operator of cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, saw a surge in sales and net profit in the first quarter of 2021, its largest shareholder’s financial results showed on Tuesday. According to Vidente’s regulatory filings, Bithumb logged 250.2 billion won ($220 million) in sales in the first quarter this year, jumping 458 percent from the same period last year. Its net profit soared 876 percent to 222.5 billion won in net profit during the same period. The company&

May 18, 2021