Korean children have received a combined 1.3 trillion won ($1.1 billion) worth of assets through some 9,700 gifts that are subject to taxation, data showed Wednesday. The value of the combined assets as of 2018 -- comprising of financial assets, properties and securities -- surged over twofold from that of 2014 at 588.4 billion won, according to data from the National Tax Service compiled by ruling Democratic Party Rep. Yang Hyang-ja. In the same period, the number of taxable gifts rose 92 per

Economy Sept. 23, 2020

The National Pension Service, South Korea‘s public pension fund, has entered into a strategic cooperation with Singapore-based Keppel Capital to beef up private infrastructure investment in Asia. According to the investment arm of offshore rig builder and shipbuilder Keppel, the strategic cooperation is meant to foster capabilities to manage energy and environmental infrastructure assets, including renewables and related technology solutions, urban development and connectivity solutions.

Market Sept. 22, 2020

Shares of Hanwha Solutions plunged Monday immediately after electric vehicle developer Nikola announced a leadership shakeup, as it faces a heap of fraud allegations and an upcoming probe. Hanwha Solutions common shares retreated 7.4 percent Monday, while its preferred stocks dipped 10 percent. Hanwha Solutions, a Seoul-based petrochemical arm of the Hanwha conglomerate, indirectly controls a minority stake in Nikola. Nikola fetched a combined $100 million of funding evenly from Hanwha Ene

Market Sept. 21, 2020

Korean investment banking group Mirae Asset Group is being swamped by litigations at home and abroad, including one against China’s Dajia Insurance Group surrounding high-profile hotel deals in the United States, filings showed Monday. As of the end of June, the total litigation costs incurred to brokerage house Mirae Asset Daewoo and its affiliates could exceed 7 trillion won ($6 billion) if the group loses all 35 lawsuits in which it is involved. The cost has gone up from 68.8 billion

Market Sept. 21, 2020

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Friday that it is scheduled to accept new applicants for a program that offers office space for foreign financial firms at affordable prices in Yeouido, a financial hub in the city. The municipal government plans to run the Seoul International Financial Office on the 16th floor of the One IFC building. Eligible applicants include foreign or South Korean financial institutions, and finance-related international organizations or nonprofit corporations enter

Market Sept. 18, 2020

The stock price of petrochemical-to-battery company LG Chem rebounded Friday after a sharp loss immediately after its announcement during trading hours Thursday that it would split off its battery operation. LG Chem shares climbed 3.3 percent in the Friday trading session. LG Chem is the fifth-largest stock on the main bourse, Kospi, with 47.1 trillion won ($40.6 billion) market cap. The slight recovery came after the Seoul-based company unveiled plans to carve out its battery unit under a ne

Market Sept. 18, 2020

South Korean asset manager Shinhan BNP Paribas Asset Management said Friday that it would beef up efforts to take climate change into account in its asset management business, as part of its green finance and impact investing. Under its climate action declaration released Friday, the joint venture of Shinhan Financial Group and BNP Paribas Asset Management will consider the impact its investment decisions and financial products could have on climate change. It is the first such declaration in

Market Sept. 18, 2020

Representatives of South Korean institutional investors said Tuesday they were increasingly tapping into distressed asset classes in their capital deployment to real estate assets, as the novel coronavirus disruption in the market is upping the appetite for the two extremes: very safe and very risky. The so-called “barbell strategy” is playing out to fight the downside impact of COVID-19, amid heightening pressure to deploy capital, institutional investors said during PERE Investor

Market Sept. 17, 2020

Users of Toss, a local financial services app operated by Viva Republica, spent 65 percent of their disaster relief funds in less than a month, the company said Thursday, referring to its data analysis. According to the estimate, 65 percent of the total 395.2 billion won ($336.5 million) in spending by 778,000 recipients was spent before end-May, after the Korean government started to dole out some 14 trillion won to every Korean household that month. Viva Republica compiled the data from use

Economy Sept. 17, 2020

South Korean investors are inching closer to taking over a student housing facility in the United States from US real estate developer Lincoln Ventures for roughly 140 billion won ($119.37 million), local brokerage arm Korea Investment & Securities said Wednesday. The 18-story building, Moontower, has four underground levels and houses 166 units with 567 beds. The high-end student residential facility will serve the University of Texas at Austin starting in the fall 2020 semester. Its 19,0

Market Sept. 16, 2020

Singapore-based online marketplace platform Carousell said Wednesday it had raised a combined $80 million funding from an investor group led by South Korean internet giant Naver. Along with Naver, other Korean investors, including Mirae Asset-Naver Growth Fund and NH Investment & Securities, took part in the consortium. Credit Suisse advised the deal. The funding enabled Carousell to exceed a $900 million valuation, according to the startup. Since launching in 2012, Carousell has been

Market Sept. 16, 2020

Hong Kong-based private equity investor PAG Asia Capital exited from Korean toy maker Young Toys by selling its entire stake for some 150 billion won ($127 million) to an investor consortium led by local book publisher MiraeN. The transaction was closed earlier last week, according to deal adviser BDA Partners, after the proposed buyer and seller inked a sales and purchase agreement for 100 percent stake in Young Toys in August. MiraeN declined to comment on deal terms. “We’re pro

Market Sept. 15, 2020

Shinhan Financial Group’s plan to increase capital, list new common shares and invite foreign private equity firms as new shareholders in October has left local market watchers with doubts about the motivation behind the move. Last week, the nation‘s No. 1 banking group by total assets said the fundraising is aimed at a securing long-term capital buffer amid COVID-19 uncertainties and a new growth driver in its global business. Questions still linger, according to analysts here, a

Market Sept. 13, 2020

Financial intelligence firm PEI said Sunday it plans to host its PERE Investor Forum: Seoul Virtual Experience 2020 on Tuesday. The virtual event is designed to connect South Korean investors with global fund managers and investment advisers to get a glimpse of the future capital flows in the real estate investment scene in and out of Korea through virtual sessions. Sharing the persepctives of Korean institutional investors will be representatives of the Public Officials Benefit Association,

Market Sept. 13, 2020

Global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield won the top commercial real estate adviser and consultant spot by Euromoney’s 2020 Real Estate Survey for the third consecutive year, the company said Sunday. Euromoney Real Estate Survey’s country result also showed that Cushman & Wakefield’s Korean unit won the award here, along with other 15 countries including the United States, Japan and China. “The success of winning the Euromoney Real Estate Awards in

Market Sept. 13, 2020