Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung on Wednesday received a suspended sentence for influence-peddling in connection with a recruiting scandal at the flagship banking unit, yet his leadership remains unscathed. The Seoul Eastern District Court handed the 63-year-old executive a six-month prison term, suspended for two years. Expressing disappointment, Cho said he would appeal the case to a higher court.The court found Cho guilty of some of the accusations against him, including influ

Market Jan. 22, 2020

South Korea will test-run a financial data exchange platform in March, enabling users to sell and purchase such data conveniently, the nation’s top financial regulator said Tuesday, in a move seen as an effort to accelerate digital transformation. According to the policymaking Financial Services Commission, the data will be uploaded to the platform by providers including financial and public institutions, insurance companies and mobile operators. It will then be purchased by buyers such as

Economy Jan. 21, 2020

South Korea plans to bolster economic ties with Russia, Mongolia and other Central Asian nations and use the momentum to buttress recovery of the export-driven economy, the top fiscal policy chief said Monday.“We will strengthen economic cooperation with our neighboring nations in line with the New Northern Policy,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki in a meeting with economy-related ministers. A cooperative scheme with Russia in nine key sectors including ra

Economy Jan. 20, 2020

South Korea ranked No. 2 on the Bloomberg Innovation Index this year, putting an abrupt halt to its six-year winning streak, government data showed Sunday.According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Korea scored 88.16 points this year, slipping a notch from last year, but has remained in the top three for nine consecutive years. Germany took the crown this year with a score of 88.21 points, switching places with Korea. Singapore was next, rebounding to No. 3. The annual Bloomberg Inno

Economy Jan. 19, 2020

The top executives of three major financial groups in South Korea are on the edge of their seats as they await a final decision by authorities on penalties regarding their malfeasance this week, which will impact governance and profitability.Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Young-byoung -- who is currently under trial over his alleged influence-peddling in the flagship Shinhan Bank’s recruiting scandal -- is facing the most pressure.The Seoul Eastern District Court is expected to annou

Market Jan. 19, 2020

Shinhan Bank is considering taking legal action against Lime Asset Management, claiming the fund operator made a unilateral decision last year to hedge its portfolio with a fund sold through the commercial lender, officials said Thursday. According to Shinhan, Lime Asset didn’t inform the lender of its plans to use Lime Credit Insurance Trade Fund assets to prevent payment delays from other funds that were facing liquidity issues at the time and that its decision amounted to a breach of tr

Market Jan. 16, 2020

Woori Financial Group is taking a cautious approach in naming the new chief of its flagship banking business due largely to the recent debacle involving the sale of high-risk private funds, according to industry sources Wednesday. The group initially planned to complete the appointment of an Woori Bank CEO before the Lunar New Year holidays, which fall Jan. 24-27. The Financial Supervisory Service is scheduled to convene a meeting Thursday to decide the punishments for the heads of two local com

Market Jan. 15, 2020

Local fund operator Lime Asset Management has recently decided to freeze an additional 500 billion won ($431.4 million) of its funds, prompting the Financial Supervisory Service to launch a new probe of the firm’s risky funds.With the suspension of withdrawals, the total volume of the fund operator’s delayed payments to investors has risen to nearly 2 trillion won. In its latest notice sent to financial institutions that had worked as sales channels, Lime Asset said it has decided to

Market Jan. 15, 2020

The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea’s new CEO Yoon Jong-won on Tuesday chaired his first official board meeting, gesturing to carry through his leadership despite the labor union’s resistance.Meanwhile, unionists continued their stage-in protest, vowing to deter what they saw as excessive government meddling in the organization’s personnel affairs. Yoon, a former senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, ordered the launch of a new task force focused on corporate i

Market Jan. 14, 2020

Big-cap K-pop stocks are projected to rally again this year given positive Seoul-Beijing relations and the return of some big players, analysts here said Monday.Shares of the three biggest entertainment agencies in South Korea -- YG, S.M. and JYP -- were volatile in 2019, weighed down by a sex-bribery scandal involving Seungri, former member of K-pop boy band Big Bang. The scandal broke out early last year leading to a turmoil in the industry. Of the three, YG Entertainment is expected to see th

Market Jan. 13, 2020

Shares of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix -- South Korea’s largest chipmakers -- which hit record highs last week should gain momentum this year on the back of the global semiconductor market’s recovery, according to analysts. Samsung shares closed at 59,500 won ($51.20) Friday, outperforming the previous all-time high of 58,600 won the previous day.Meanwhile, its crosstown rival SK hynix shed 0.1 percent from the previous trading to close at 98,900 won, failing to extend its rally

Market Jan. 12, 2020

South Korea’s finance minister said Friday that the government would continue to monitor the situation in the Middle East and would respond firmly to any threats, while reassuring them that the tensions would have a limited impact on the economy. “We will closely monitor the volatile situation in the Middle East along with the market trend and respond firmly if necessary, as related uncertainties continue to exist,” Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said in

Economy Jan. 10, 2020

To combat economic fears stemming from the escalating geopolitical tensions, the financial authorities have bolstered their monitoring and reiterated their commitment on Wednesday to swiftly stabilize the market via contingency plans if necessary.Global markets were rattled by escalating tensions in the Middle East, as Iran fired more than a dozen ballistic missiles at a US air base in Iraq early Wednesday in retaliation for last week’s American drone strike to kill a top Iranian commander

Economy Jan. 8, 2020

South Korea’s current account surplus came to $5.97 billion in November, marking a surplus for the seventh consecutive month, amid sluggish exports, data from the Bank of Korea showed Tuesday.The central bank’s preliminary data showed that the nation’s current account surplus in November grew $840 million. It recorded a surplus in May 2019 after posting a deficit in the previous month. The surplus in November marks the first on-year surplus growth in nine months.  The grow

Economy Jan. 7, 2020

Bringing both financial sustainability and transparency have been the focus of South Korean banks amid growing calls around the world for good corporate governance practices and increased predictability in the market.Companies here -- both financial and nonfinancial -- floated an almost combined $13 billion worth of environmental, social and corporate governance-linked bonds in 2019 alone, nearly double from the previous year’s corresponding figure of $7 billion, according to data provided

Market Jan. 6, 2020