FSC to grant financial firms easier access to databases

South Korea’s top financial policymaking body rolled out plans Monday to lower regulatory barriers for local financial firms to capitalize on databases accumulated in the public sector to improve their products, while also strengthening ways for consumers to take control of their own personal information shared by different financial services firms. The Financial Services Commission said such measures in the long run would be key to achieving “financial inclusion.” In a me

March 19, 2018

Douglas Min leads AIG Korea as CEO

Douglas Min has taken office as president and chief executive officer of insurer American International Group Korea, the firm said Monday.This came two weeks after a shareholders meeting approved a one-year tenure for Min. AIG Korea is wholly owned by AIG Asia Pacific Insurance, based in Singapore.  With over 20 years of experience in the field, Min replaced Steven Barnett, who stepped down Monday after serving as chief of the global insurer’s Korean unit since 2011. Min joined AIG in

March 19, 2018

[Advertorial] Eximbank to inject 600m euros into Turkey’s landmark bridge project

Export-Import Bank of Korea will inject some 600 million euros ($739 million) into a 3.1 billion euro landmark project in Turkey, which involves SK Engineering & Construction and Daelim Industry, officials said Sunday."Eximbank will provide the Canakkale bridge and highway project with 300 million euros in loan and 300 million euros in warranty,” the state-run bank said in a press release.The two South Korean builders last year won the deal to build the world’s longest

March 18, 2018

[Kosdaq Star] K-pop giant S.M. enhances TV series production arm

This is the 52nd in a series of articles analyzing major companies traded on the tech-heavy Kosdaq market. -- Ed.K-pop juggernaut S.M. Entertainment has ramped up efforts to equip itself with TV series production capacities and stronger actor and actress lineups in response to a growing demand for South Korean TV content in the global market. On Wednesday, the firm confirmed two planned acquisition deals worth a combined 80 billion won ($74.9 million).Along with anticipation for improvement in t

March 18, 2018

BOK chief expects let-up in housing price hikes

South Korea's housing price hikes are expected to moderate in Seoul and several nearby areas due to a rise in new homes and lending regulations, the central bank's chief said Saturday."An increase in the housing supply and regulations on property markets and loans will help stabilize the housing prices. This will likely slow the growth of home prices," Bank of Korea (BOK) Gov. Lee Ju-yeol, nominated for a second term, said in a report to lawmakers ahead of his confirmation hearing.&nbs

March 17, 2018

Hana Financial chief faces bumpy road ahead of reinstatement

The fate of Hana Financial Group Chairman Kim Jung-tai remains to be seen, as he faces a scandal with just a week left till the group’s shareholders meeting to vote on his third three-year term. Financial watchdogs have zeroed in on the banking group on allegations of recruitment irregularities, while a revelation by the group’s labor union has added fuel to the scandal, arguing Kim was engaged in wrongdoings in its recruitment process.An internal committee consisting of external dir

March 16, 2018

Samsung, SK hynix shares soar on bright outlooks

South Korean chip behemoths Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc. have seen their share prices shoot up this month on rosy forecasts for their earnings, data showed Friday.The price surge, which comes after their shares went south early this year on worries that the chip industry has peaked and would face weak offseason demand, has sent shares of chip components and equipment makers rising in tandem.According to the data from the Korea Exchange, Samsung Electronics, the world's top memory ch

March 16, 2018

Watchdog urges foreign financial firms to step up efforts against money laundering

The Financial Supervisory Service on Thursday urged foreign financial companies operating here for more efforts in anti-money laundering actions amid increasing cross-border transactions and the rapid advancement of financial technology services.Underlining the country’s upper hand in information and communication technology and innovation, the watchdog also encouraged companies from advanced countries to actively share their financial technologies and operating know-how.The 10th annual se

March 15, 2018

FSC to toughen governance rules for financial firms

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission announced Thursday a set of plans to strengthen corporate governance rules for financial firms here, mainly to tackle a lack of transparency in nomination processes for chiefs at local banking firms.The plans to revise the Act on Corporate Governance of Financial Companies, to be proposed by June, aim to prohibit the incumbent chief of a financial firm from joining an internal committee to nominate outside directors. It would also obligate o

March 15, 2018

Korean banks' foreign currency deposits decrease in Feb.

Foreign currency deposits at banks in South Korea dropped for the second-straight month in February amid the strong US dollar trend, central bank data showed Thursday.Foreign currency deposits held by banks here reached $80.96 billion at the end of February, down $940 million from a month earlier, according to the data compiled by the Bank of Korea. It said people sold their dollar possessions as the Korean won lost ground against the US greenback last month, touching a two-month low of 1,092 wo

March 15, 2018

FSC chief sides with Kumho Tire creditors

Financial Services Commission Chairman Choi Jong-ku said Kumho Tire creditors’ demand to normalize the Korean tire manufacturer mainly by selling the firm’s majority stake to a Chinese firm is a “prerequisite” for the firm’s survival, during a press conference Wednesday.Choi called for the tiremaker’s labor union to comply with the self-restructuring plan in the making, amid the union’s opposition due to fears of employment insecurity and a technology le

March 14, 2018

Visa Korea appoints new CEO

Global payment solution provider Visa said Wednesday that it has appointed Patrick Yoon as the country manager to lead its Korean office. The incoming business chief has worked at various branches of Standard Chartered bank, steering strategy, business development and mergers and acquisitions, officials said. For the past four years, he led the retail finance headquarters at SC Korea.Before joining SC in 2005, Yoon also served in the investment department of Morgan Stanley in the United States.&

March 14, 2018

Korea Post launches special MoneyGram service for foreign customers

The Korea Post designated Monday 15 post offices in areas with a high number of foreign residents, offering overseas money transfer options via MoneyGram.Officials of the national postal service have announced that so far Seoul’s Itaewon Post Office, Uijeongbu Post Office in Gyeonggi Province and 13 other places will operate as “special MoneyGram post offices” to meet the high demand of money transfers in those specific areas. MoneyGram lets customers send money for cash pick-u

March 13, 2018

Kyobo chief receives highest dividend in insurance industry

Shin Chang-jae, chief executive officer and chairman of Kyobo Life Insurance, received over 34 billion won ($32 million) in stock dividend last year, ranking first among top officials of the insurance industry. The life insurer decided to allocate 5,000 won per common stock for the fiscal year 2017 and to pay 102.5 billion won in total dividends, up 25.6 billion won or 33.3 percent from the previous year, officials said Tuesday.Shin, who is also the insurer’s largest shareholder with 6.9 m

March 13, 2018

Hana Financial under renewed probe upon FSS chief resignation

The Financial Supervisory Service on Tuesday launched a special investigation into misconduct at Hana Financial Group and its subsidiary KEB Hana Bank in hiring entry-level employees.The move came a day after the watchdog’s former governor, Choe Heung-sik, offered to resign amid growing allegations that he was involved in the scandal during his stint at the banking group in 2013. A 15-day special in-house counsel team headed by FSS Deputy Gov. Choi Seong-il was launched Tuesday to loo

March 13, 2018

FSS chief steps down in recruitment scandal

The chief of the Financial Supervisory Service, Choe Heung-sik tendered his resignation Monday, amid allegations of him arranging recruitment favors during his stint at Hana Financial Group, according to the FSS.The news came hours after a decision by the FSS to launch a probe into a scandal involving hiring at Hana Financial Group. Gov. Choe, who took office in September 2017, had served as Hana Financial Group chief executive from 2012 to 2014. While denying involvement in any wrongdoing,

March 12, 2018

Stock rallies selective in inter-Korean thaw

In the wake of signs of US-North Korea and inter-Korean thaws, spearheading the latest rally of South Korean markets were stocks that previously had business ties with North Korea effectively severed. These firms, locally dubbed “inter-Korean business cooperation-themed stocks,” had either operated production facilities at Kaesong industrial park, been involved in joint efforts to build cultural parks at Mount Kumkang in the North or the Korean Demilitarized Zone, or been seen as lik

March 11, 2018

Seoul shares expected to stay within tight range next week

South Korean shares are likely to remain within a tight range next week as US President Donald Trump's trade protectionist measures weigh on the local equity market, observers here said Saturday.    The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) closed at 2,459.45 points on Friday, gaining 2.38 percent over the week.   Trump signed import tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent for aluminum, but raised the likelihood of exempting allies from the high duties.&nb

March 10, 2018

Korea unveils ledger-free blockchain

South Korea‘s research team unveiled Thursday it has developed a ledger-free blockchain system that runs on inter-device communication system featuring enhanced security, designed to tackle consumer inconvenience on existing blockchain platforms that stems from consensus delay and slow transaction speed.  The homegrown system, dubbed “PureChain,” will have an inter-node transaction go through both external confirmation between nodes, or those engaging in the transaction, a

March 8, 2018

KB Financial chief’s balanced strategy upholds ‘leading bank vision’

Since 2014, KB Financial Group has renewed one business record after another, raising its yearly net profit to a record-high benchmark, moving a step ahead of rivals and cementing its position as industry champion.At the heart of such progress was Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo, who is noted for his strategic balance between the group’s signature banking sector and prominent nonbanking businesses.In September last year, Yoon was reappointed as the financial holding company’s chairman, marki

March 8, 2018