South Korea’s asset management companies are beefing up their drive to take environmental, social and governance factors into account, by endorsing an international climate initiative and by creating an internal body to monitor the green investing process. On Tuesday, three Seoul-based asset management firms -- KB Asset Management, Samsung Asset Management and its subsidiary Samsung Active Asset Management -- announced that they have joined a cohort of some 2,000 organizations from 7

Market April 20, 2021

This is a part of a series of interviews and analyses of South Korea’s top bankers, policymakers and investors leading the financial industry here. This is the fourth installment. -- Ed. Korea Development Bank Chairman Lee Dong-gull, the first KDB chief in 26 years to serve a second term, has sought to change the public image of the state-run investment bank as an inconsiderate spender of unlimited amounts of public money to indebted companies. Since assuming office in 2017, Lee, 68, ha

Market April 19, 2021

Private Debt Investor, a publication dedicated to the global private debt investing scene, said Monday it plans to hold a virtual event this week on exploring opportunities and challenges in private debt investing across the Asia-Pacific region. The PDI APAC Summit Virtual Experience 2021 will be held from Wednesday to Thursday. The inaugural two-day virtual event will feature investors Aware Super, Allianz Investment Management, NGS Super, International Finance Corp. and Japan Post Bank,

Market April 19, 2021

An investor group led by South Korean builder Dongbu Corp. signed a deal to acquire a controlling stake in debt-saddled shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction, filings showed Friday. According to the filings, a consortium composed of Dongbu and local private equity firm Echoprime Private Equity will buy a combined 55.7 million common shares, or 66.85 percent voting rights, from eight banks including the state-run Korea Development Bank and the Philippines-based BDO Unibank. T

Market April 16, 2021

South Korean institutional investor, the Construction Workers Mutual Aid Association, has selected four domestic external partners for its 60 billion-won ($53.7 million) commitment to have exposure to private equities and venture capital, an official said Friday. The institutional investor, dedicated to the welfare of workers in the field of construction, has decided to allocate a combined 40 billion won to Dominus Investment and Stic Investments for its private equity exposure. The external p

Market April 16, 2021

The burgeoning co-investment market in South Korea has reached maturity enough to offer attractive opportunities for investors, US-based investment firm Adams Street Partners said Thursday. Institutional investors that carry out co-investment strategies with its private equity fund managers in Korea and abroad are likely to take advantage of the private equity market in the fourth-largest economy in Asia, a trade powerhouse with growth potential in select industries, noted Dave Brett, partner

Market April 15, 2021

A looming legal battle between a top insurance firm and an issuer of derivative-linked securities raises concerns over the financial product -- whose underlying asset, a trade finance fund, had deferred redemption. Samsung Life Insurance, which sold over 53 billion won ($47 million) worth of DLS products through a privately pooled fund, is awaiting court proceedings against NH Investment & Securities, the brokerage firm that issued the DLS for the seller, the company said Wednesday. A Sa

Market April 14, 2021

Blockchain professionals and experts flocked to Seoul on Tuesday to discuss the latest trends surrounding digital assets. Topics at the seminar, dubbed World Blockchain Summit Marvels Seoul 2021, revolved around wealth transfers with the arrival of digital assets, digital transformation in the world of finance, blockchain-driven business models and regulatory hurdles, as well as the world of decentralized finance. Digital asset wallet developer Bitberry’s Chief Executive Officer Yoo Ja

Market April 13, 2021

Macquarie Investment Management Korea has been rebranded as Feynman Asset Management upon an acquisition deal proposed by a South Korean private equity firm, the company said Monday. The asset management company, which oversees some 1.3 trillion won ($1.2 billion) worth of assets, has named Kim Eun-soo to lead the company. Kim is the former head of the Korean unit of Hong Kong-based Mason Group Holdings. Feynman Invest, a fledgling private equity firm, gained regulatory approval from the Fin

Market April 12, 2021

Behind the growing number of cross-border business deals both small and large in South Korea is not only the nation’s technological competitiveness, but also its legal certainty, top lawyers here said. “As law firms and attorneys take themselves to the next level, Korea’s legal system is increasingly becoming predictable,” said Sky Yang, a managing partner and chief financial officer of Bae, Kim & Lee. That’s not to mention Korea’s civil codes influence

Market April 11, 2021

More initial public offerings of South Korean companies are on deck, as the IPO landscape here is increasingly becoming a heated battleground for investors searching for an immediate return after their listing on the stock market. Korea’s IPO market appears to have returned to the pre-pandemic level, as liquidity-driven investors are rushing to opportunities and regulators are shaping out rules to give IPO stock investors a fairer chance of allocation. In the first quarter, 14 companies

Market April 11, 2021

Foreign investors have a hard time navigating South Korea’s “unique” private equity investment landscape, having to face obstacles such as family-run conglomerates’ dominance in the domestic industry, a private equity professional said in a virtual seminar on Thursday. “South Korea is very unique market,” Chue En Yaw, managing director and head of private equity funds at Temasek-owned Azalea Asset Management, told audience of the virtual seminar hosted by ca

Market April 8, 2021

Seoul-based Samsung Asset Management and Canadian counterpart Manulife Investment Management have signed a memorandum of understanding for the bilateral strategic alliance, Samsung Asset said Thursday. The largest asset management firm in South Korea, overseeing some 280 trillion won ($250 billion) assets in March, will team up with Manulife IM to explore opportunities in overseas alternative investing, private assets and specialized public market strategies. The partnership will also allow the

Market April 8, 2021

South Korea’s financial watchdog said Tuesday that it holds NH Investment & Securities, the nation’s second-largest brokerage firm by net assets, entirely accountable for the misselling practices associated with the Optimus Asset Management alleged hedge fund fraud. The Financial Supervisory Service ordered NH Investment to compensate end-investors for losses of some 300 billion won ($267 million) incurred in 326 cases they brought to the Financial Dispute Conciliation Committe

Market April 6, 2021

Hotel transaction volume in South Korea’s capital city of Seoul fell sharply in 2020 as travel restrictions stemming from the coronavirus pandemic sent shock waves through the accommodation industry, data showed Tuesday. The 22 hotel transactions that closed in Seoul last year amounted to 701.8 billion won ($624.8 million), down 53 percent from a year prior, according to data from real estate services firm GenstarMate. In the meantime Seoul’s hotel occupancy rate, a key indicator

Market April 6, 2021