South Korea’s Shinhan Financial Group on Tuesday launched a mobile payment solution, as traditional banking groups seek to bolster their digital capabilities in competition against rising fintech firms. The payment solution, Shinhan Pay, provides Shinhan Card subscribers with easy-to-use payment services and money transfers at several offline stores. For Shinhan Bank users, Shinhan Pay allows them to easily subscribe and activate mobile debit cards linked to their bank accounts. Shin

Market April 20, 2021

Hana Financial Group has been receiving intense backlash over its credit card unit chief and bank branch manager’s alleged inappropriate and sexist behaviors that were reported only weeks apart. On April 6, Hana Card’s then-CEO Jang Kyung-hoon stepped down after a leaked audio recording of him saying picking a credit card was like “choosing a wife,” went viral last month. He also drew comparisons to female companions in so-called “room salons” here, which are

Market April 19, 2021

Citigroup has yet to announce the details of its retail banking exit strategy from South Korea as of Sunday, but the most probable scenario is that the firm will break up its consumer business here before selling, according to industry watchers. On Friday, Citigroup decided to exit retail banking in Korea and other 12 markets across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa as part of reorganization plans. The move signals a significant downsizing for Citibank Korea, a wholly owned subsidiary o

Market April 18, 2021

South Korea’s central bank chief said Thursday that the nation’s economy is likely to expand in the mid-3 percent mark this year, rosier than its previous forecast in February. The bank also decided to keep its policy rate frozen at a record low of 0.5 percent on concerns of a looming fourth wave of the COVID-19 virus. “The current situation surrounding both the global and the Korean economy show that the mid-3 percent growth for this year is a possible outcome,” Bank o

Economy April 15, 2021

Women accounted for merely 7 percent of the management boards of financial institutions in South Korea, despite making up nearly half the sector’s workforce, data submitted to a lawmaker showed Wednesday. The number of women who hold executive positions in 444 financial institutions stood at 358, or 7.4 percent of the entire executive pool of 4,855 as of end of last year, according to Financial Supervisory Service data submitted and distributed by the minor progressive Justice Party Rep.

Market April 14, 2021

South Korean households spent a monthly average of 7.2 percent more on lottery tickets last year, compared with the previous year, data from the Korean Statistical Information Service showed Tuesday. Korean households each spent a monthly average of 590 won ($0.52) on lottery tickets last year, according to Kosis. The data also took households that didn’t purchase lottery tickets into account, in calculating the average figure. The increase in lottery ticket spending came amid a recor

Market April 13, 2021

South Korea’s financial watchdog on Friday imposed a penalty on Woori Financial Group Chairman Sohn Tae-seung, holding him responsible for its commercial banking unit’s misselling of funds tied to the 1.7 trillion-won ($1.52 billion) Lime Asset Management scandal. The penalty puts further pressure on Sohn, who is already in a legal fight against the Financial Supervisory Service over its sanction slapped on him for another misselling issue. Sohn was reprimanded with the third-str

Market April 9, 2021

South Korean households spent a record-high net 83.3 trillion (74.5 billion) won in stock investment last year, central bank data showed Thursday, but their borrowing also surged to an unprecedented level, indicating where their money for investment came from. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, local households and nonprofit agencies serving households invested a total 63.2 trillion won in Korean stocks and 20.1 trillion won in overseas shares in 2020, according to the preliminary data by the Ba

Economy April 8, 2021

South Korea’s NH NongHyup Bank said Wednesday it has earned preliminary approval from China’s financial authorities to open a branch in Beijing. The nation’s sixth-largest lender by assets won the approval from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission on Friday, after lodging the application in August last year. It plans to receive the final approval by the end of the year, officials said. The opening of the branch would mark NH NongHyup’s first move to lau

Market April 7, 2021

South Korean banking groups have approached the financial authorities in hopes of launching their own internet-only lenders, industry insiders said Tuesday, amid the growing popularity of platforms such as Kakao Bank. The Korea Federation of Banks, a body that represents commercial lenders here, recently received a joint message from the banking groups, including the five major ones -- KB, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH -- conveying their plans to foray into the internet-only banking business, if

Market April 6, 2021

With South Korea’s financial authorities gearing up to launch the nation’s first 40-year mortgage this year, as of Monday there was talk of longer-term options ahead -- as well as concern about whether longer-term mortgages are appropriate for the local housing market. The policymaking Financial Services Commission said Sunday that the state-backed 40-year option would be introduced for younger people and newly married borrowers as early as July. The FSC is jointly planning the mor

Economy April 5, 2021

Retail investors have snapped up almost all of a 137 billion-won ($121 million) fund aimed at promoting government-led projects under the Korean New Deal as of Sunday, as individuals seek to take advantage of the state policy fund to use as a financial cushion against losses. The 137 billion won was earmarked for retail investors out of a larger 200 million-won fund. The 137 billion won was parceled and sold via five major commercial banks on Thursday. The ones offered by the commercial lender

Market April 4, 2021

This article is part of analysis and interviews by The Korea Herald’s finance desk staff exploring South Korea’s budding ESG investment market, as well as its potential, impact and challenges. -- Ed. Of all the changes stemming from the banking sector’s embrace of environmental, social and governance values in recent years, according to 53-year-old Shin Hae-jin, the one that stands out most is the absence of paper in “paperwork.” “Since last year, I’ve

Market April 1, 2021

A Burmese employee at Shinhan Bank’s Yangon branch was shot amid an escalating bloodshed in Myanmar, the South Korean lender and a Burmese news outlet said Thursday. The female employee was shot while heading home in a company vehicle, at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, after work. According to reports, she was taken to a hospital in critical condition. The employee’s current condition is unknown. Shinhan has been operating a branch in Yangon with a minimum number of employees stationed at

Market April 1, 2021

Electronic payments in South Korea increased 32.7 percent on-year in 2020, hitting a record high of 705.5 billion won ($624 million), in terms of daily average transactions, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, central bank data showed Monday. “The social distancing measures implemented due to the spread of the COVID-19 has led to a continued expansion of contactless online transactions,” the Bank of Korea said in a statement. The reading marked the highest amount since the BOK started col

Market March 29, 2021