Four major South Korean banking groups posted better-than-expected third quarter net profit, bolstered by nonbanking businesses amid coronavirus woes, data provided by the firms as of Thursday showed. In terms of quarterly net profit, KB Financial Group maintained the top spot for two consecutive quarters, having gained 24.1 percent on-year to 1.16 trillion won ($1 billion). Shinhan Financial Group, which relinquished the crown to KB last quarter, still posted an impressive net profit of 1.1

Market Oct. 29, 2020

South Korea’s consumer sentiment improved significantly in October driven by rising optimism over the economic outlook and relaxed social distancing rules, central bank data showed Wednesday. The composite consumer sentiment index gained 12.2 points to 91.6 on-month, marking the greatest single month increase the gauge has seen in some 12 years, the Bank of Korea said. The index gained 20.2 points on-month to 93 in April 2009, when the country was reeling from the 2008 financial crisis.

Economy Oct. 28, 2020

Woori Financial Group said Monday that its third-quarter net profit dropped 1.13 percent on-year to 479.8 billion won ($425 million), but was above market expectations amid coronavirus woes. Local brokerages had projected an average 468.7 billion won for Woori’s third-quarter net profit. 　 The figure was calculated based on the respective sizes of the stakes Woori holds in its units. Under the premise that Woori holds 100 percent stake in all of its units, the figure would amount to 521

Market Oct. 26, 2020

October has been a brutal month for South Korean Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki. Amid heated public criticism against the government’s key fiscal decisions, Hong turned to YouTube on Saturday to defend the government’s fiscal soundness plan announced earlier this month, in a rare move as the top public official of the country. The minister, wearing casual clothes, appeared in five videos explaining the “Korean fiscal soundness rules” to give a full picture of how the gov

Market Oct. 25, 2020

South Korea’s financial watchdog has decided to restrict unlicensed investment advisers’ activities on instant messaging apps like KakaoTalk and Telegram, financial authorities said Thursday. The Financial Supervisory Service made the decision Wednesday to eliminate messaging app chatrooms from among the list of eligible platforms where such advisers can work. The option would be deleted on the business plan the advisers are required to submit to the watchdog. The current law bans

Market Oct. 22, 2020

Phnom Penh Commercial Bank -- the Cambodian subsidiary of JB Financial Group’s flagship lender -- signed a deal with a Thailand-based financial technology firm to provide electronic loan repayment services to customers, the South Korean banking group said Wednesday. PPC Bank’s latest memorandum of understanding with True Money is to allow customers to repay both the principal and interest back to the lender via the fintech firm’s electronic wallet service known as True Money

Market Oct. 21, 2020

South Korea’s central bank on Wednesday held a ceremony for the launch of its upgraded large-value interbank fund transfer system, which started operations last week. The Bank of Korea’s real time gross settlement system is the nation’s only system handling transfers of large funds between financial institutions. The system was first launched in 1994 and was upgraded previously in 2009, but the BOK has been building the “next-generation” version since 2015 t

Market Oct. 21, 2020

Major South Korean bank KB Kookmin’s incumbent CEO is likely to keep his role for another year, as he was tapped by board members on Tuesday as the sole candidate for the position, the firm said. KB Kookmin Bank CEO Hur Yin has been selected by the lender’s holding group KB Financial Group’s affiliate leadership nomination committee to serve his third term as his one-year second term is set to end on Nov. 20. Hur would have to gain approvals from a similar, yet lower committe

Market Oct. 20, 2020

Major South Korean banking group KB Financial Group said Tuesday that it has issued 500 billion won ($439.1 million) worth of hybrid bonds focused on environmental, social and governance investment. They are the first won-denominated ESG bonds issued by a banking group here, the firm said. While a growing number of local financial institutions have floated ESG bonds in recent years, it was usually the major banking group’s flagship lenders that handled the business, not the holding compan

Market Oct. 20, 2020

South Korea is considering placing a tax-free cap on local consumers’ direct purchases from foreign countries, to be enacted as early as 2022, officials said Monday. The move comes as the government has been eyeing ways to invigorate domestic consumption and Korea Customs Service Commissioner Roh Suk-hwan’s announcement of the idea in a parliamentary audit last week. “(From December, the) KCS will make mandatory for consumers to receive personal customs clearance codes to an

Economy Oct. 19, 2020

South Korea, as of Sunday, has decided to resume its discount coupon program, after suspending it in mid-August due to a resurgence of the coronavirus, to invigorate domestic spending amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But concerns persist that the consumption scheme could again lead to a virus flare-up, alongside skepticism over its actual long-term effect on the economy. The scheme -- part of the government’s 90.4 billion-won ($76.2 million) domestic spending revitalization plan -- distribut

Economy Oct. 18, 2020

Shinhan Financial Group said Thursday that it has launched a comprehensive online auto financing platform that allows users to gain access to the firm’s loan and lease services. Shinhan’s customers can now check their credit limits and compare auto finance products or monthly installment plans tied to loans, leases and rentals via the platform dubbed “My Car.” The platform is available on its website and in app form. “My Car” was created by merging two sep

Market Oct. 15, 2020

South Korea’s central bank on Wednesday kept its benchmark interest rate anchored near 0.5 percent, hinting that it is treading cautious steps not to further aggravate the nation’s loan and housing markets, amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Bank of Korea’s seven-member monetary policy board unanimously voted to hold the base rate at a record low rate, maintaining the decision it had made in late May. The board slashed the rate by a whopping 0.5 of a percentage point to 0.75

Economy Oct. 14, 2020

South Korea’s state-run trade insurance firm has failed to retrieve some 1.4 trillion won ($1.2 billion) so far spent to cover local exporters' losses in their deals with foreign companies, data showed Tuesday. The Korea Trade Insurance Corp. also known as K-Sure under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, mainly offers guarantees to banks that extend loans to Korean overseas developers that require large-scale and long-term financing and issue bonds to exporters. But it also offers

Market Oct. 13, 2020

Standard Chartered Bank Korea said Monday it planned to host a webinar on environmental, social and governance investment on Thursday as such standards become more prominent in the coronavirus pandemic era. The event, co-hosted by a local youth civic group Green Environment Youth Korea, will discuss the subject of climate change along with sustainable financial investment for millennials, among other subjects. Standard Chartered Group CEO Bill Winters, who recently wrapped-up a monthlong tr

Market Oct. 12, 2020