Toss Card launched in Korea for online, offline purchases

Viva Republica, operator of South Korea’s leading mobile payment and finance platform Toss, on Thursday announced the launch of Toss Card for both offline and online use.　The Toss Card connects to users’ Toss account and is linked to their commercial bank accounts, thus functioning like a debit card. It can be used across all BC Card retailers, the firm said. The card comes in two colors -- black and silver -- and is able to support a maximum of 2 million won ($1,760) per paymen

April 4, 2019

S. Korea nears top among APEC states in use of digital finance

South Korea was No. 1 among states in the Asia-Pacific region in the utilization of digital finance such as online shopping and internet banking, data showed Tuesday.But it also showed a sharp digital divide, with relatively large differences according to age and income. According to the Asian Digital Transformation Index report published by the Economic Intelligence Unit and MasterCard, Seoul’s portion of customers with no experience online shopping stood at 24 percent. The figure was sec

April 2, 2019

Korean branches of foreign banks see 27% hike in 2018 net profit

The South Korean branches of foreign banks here saw their net profit last year grow 27.4 percent from the previous year, on the back of robust interest income, according to tracking data from the Financial Supervisory Service released Tuesday.The 38 global banks operating here, such as HSBC Bank, raised 867.3 billion won ($764 million) in 2018, marking a 27.4 percent increase from 186.6 billion won recorded the previous year, the data showed. During this time frame, their interest-led incom

April 2, 2019

BOK picks 2 local AMCs to manage FX holdings

The Bank of Korea has selected two domestic asset management companies to manage its foreign exchange holdings and make stock market investments in advanced economies, officials said Monday.The local AMCs will join two foreign firms which have being managing BOK’s FX holdings so far. The central bank however did not name the two firms that have been selected, in accordance with industry practices. “We will sign a consignment contract by April and put $150 million in a trust for each

April 1, 2019

Korea kick-starts financial regulatory sandbox experiment

South Korea’s financial regulatory sandbox policy went into effect Monday, with the Financial Services Commission selecting 19 innovative fintech services for “priority review.”The Financial Services Commission’s innovative finance review panel held its first meeting to decide on the first batch of fintech services to covered by the regulatory sandbox policy.The envisioned services span diverse categories including loans (five), insurance (two), capital market (three), ea

April 1, 2019

KB Financial chairman calls for China business expansion

KB Financial Group chief Yoon Jong-kyoo called for greater business expansion in the Chinese market, during talks at the Boao Forum, market watchers said Sunday.　The chairman outlined his goals at the CEO conference of the gathering on Friday, in Hainan Island. Both South Korean and Chinese government officials and business representatives attended the conference. 　Choi Jong-ku, head of the Financial Services Commission, and Korea Investment Corp, CEO Choi Hee-am were present along with some 25

March 31, 2019

Non-interest earnings make up 12% of profits generated by Korean banks

Non-interest related earnings made up just 12 percent of profits generated by local banks in 2018, much below the global average, a local think tank said Sunday.　The latest findings clearly showed the high degree of dependence on interest and the need to diversify the business portfolios of lenders, the report by Korea Institute of Finance said. 　It said that out of the 45.8 trillion won (US$40.3 billion) in total profits reported by banks, non-interest earnings stood at 5.5 trillion won. 　By le

March 31, 2019

Kumho Asiana creditors demand asset selloff, solid loan repayment plan

Despite the voluntary departure of the Kumho Asiana chairman last week, the main creditors of the conglomerate, which owns South Korea’s second-largest air carrier Asiana Airlines, have demanded that it sell off its high-value assets and draw up a solid loan repayment plan to improve liquidity.　The demands were pushed by Asiana Airlines’ main creditors, including the state-run Korea Development Bank, as a condition for their continued support in normalizing the airline’s financ

March 31, 2019

Firms delay filing of annual reports on stricter audit law

The number of South Korean firms that have delayed the filing of their annual reports this year nearly doubled compared to last year, data released by the nation’s main bourse operator showed Friday, in a phenomenon sparked by the reinforced external audit act. According to the Korea Exchange, seven Kospi- and Kosdaq-listed firms recently requested to extend the deadline for the filing of annual reports by one week to April 8, citing their failure to receive auditors’ opinions on the

March 29, 2019

Who will be the next big name in S. Korea’s internet-only bank business?

The bid to enter South Korea’s promising internet-only bank market has turned into a one-on-one match between two leading consortia -- brokerage-led, capital-affluent Kiwoom Bank and fintech-based, innovation-focused Toss Bank.Kiwoom Bank, led by local brokerage Kiwoom Securities, touts its financial strength and a diverse shareholder base that includes telecommunications and retail companies. Toss Bank, steered by Viva Republica, operator of popular payment platform Toss, has decided to u

March 28, 2019

[News Focus] Korea’s finance ‘regulatory sandbox’ experiment takes effect in April

South Korea’s “regulatory sandbox” policy for the finance sector will take effect next week, bringing in a system of flexible regulations with the goal of accelerating innovations in financial technology.　The Special Act on Financial Innovation Support was enacted in the legislature in November last year and formally takes effect April 1. Under the legislation, the Korean government is seeking to foster emerging startups in new business arenas -- especially the fintech sector,

March 28, 2019

Financial firms compete to take charge of Labor Ministry’s W28tr funds

South Korea’s financial firms are set to compete this week to be picked as outsourced chief investment offices in charge of the government’s unemployment and industrial accident insurance funds worth a total of 28 trillion won ($24.6 billion), sources said Wednesday. The Ministry of Employment and Labor will choose one brokerage and one asset management firm from a pool of bidders, to respectively manage a state-owned 10 trillion won unemployment insurance fund and an 18 trillion won

March 27, 2019

KT hits snag in move to increase K bank stake

South Korea’s fair trade authorities are investigating KT for alleged collusion in a government-issued business project -- a development that could hurt the telecom company’s chances of gaining approval to increase its stake in its internet-only bank, K bank.According to industry sources Wednesday, the Fair Trade Commission is currently investigating local telcos KT, SK Telecom, LG Uplus and Sejong Telecom on suspicions of collusion in a circuit line business project.KT has notified

March 27, 2019

Hyundai AutoEver shares to be listed on Kospi this week

Shares of Hyundai AutoEver will be traded on the country’s main stock market this week, the bourse operator said on March 27.　The ICT service provider of the world’s fifth-largest automotive conglomerate will go public on the Kospi on March 28 after the Korea Exchange gave the nod to its listing. 　The initial public offering price was set at 48,000 won ($42.3) per share, and the listing could generate around 1 trillion won in fresh capital, according to the KRX.　Hyundai AutoEver

March 27, 2019

[Contribution] In investments, managing 'emotional returns' is key to staying on track

The Korea Herald publishes a regular contribution series written by senior investment strategists at Standard Chartered Group Wealth Management. – Ed.Early this year, our investment committee members went on the road to present our 2019 Outlook to our clients across Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Europe, as we do every year. One of the key messages that we have constantly communicated over the years is the importance of diversification. While we get the sense that some of our investors

March 26, 2019

Shinhan Bank’s new CEO pledges two-track globalization strategy

Shinhan Bank’s newly appointed CEO Jin Ok-dong on Tuesday pledged a two-track strategy for the bank’s global push, calling for the formation of strong business assets in key currency markets such as the US and Japan while citing plans to build a locally competitive presence in emerging markets.　“I believe in a two-track strategy for the bank’s global expansion,” Jin said in his inaugural press conference at Shinhan Bank’s headquarters in Seoul. 　“One tra

March 26, 2019

Mirae Asset to expand presence in Asia: founder says in letter to employees

South Korea’s Mirae Asset will make a foray into the Japanese market by the end of the year, while expanding its business in China and India, its founder said in an email to employees on Monday. “Demand for global financial products will only continue to grow,” wrote Park Hyeon-joo from New York, on his last leg of a business trip around the world, in his first letter to the employees in two years. After stepping down as chairman of Mirae Asset Financial Group in Korea las

March 26, 2019

Viva Republica finalizes consortium for internet-only Toss Bank

Viva Republica, operator of mobile payment app Toss, said Monday that it has finalized a consortium to establish Toss Bank, the third internet-only bank here.The consortium will consist of Silicon Valley-based venture capital Altos Ventures, Goodwater Capital, Brazil’s Nubank, UK fintech player Revolut, and the Korea Electronic Certification Authority, the company said in a press release.While Viva Republica will hold a 67 percent stake -- as a financial operator, not as an information and

March 25, 2019

Hyundai AutoEver’s IPO to help Hyundai Motor heir solidify control

Hyundai Motor Group’s IT services unit plans to go public on South Korea’s main bourse this week, which is expected to turn the odds further in favor of heir apparent Chung Eui-sun, according to analysts Monday. Hyundai AutoEver won approval for an initial public offering on the Kospi bourse earlier this year with the price per share being set at 48,000 won ($42.28). It aims to raise around 168.4 billion won through the listing scheduled for Friday. The IPO is expected to play a key

March 25, 2019

SsangYong Motor now at center of credit card transaction fee dispute

SsangYong Motor is set to terminate its contracts with South Korean credit card companies on Tuesday if the two sides fail to conclude their card transaction fee negotiations before the due date, marking another high-profile standoff between a large firm and local card providers here.　The automaker has notified Shinhan Card, Samsung Card and Lotte Card -- among the biggest credit and debit card providers in Korea -- that their business ties will end if they do not agree to its transaction fee pr

March 25, 2019