The Korea Herald

Competition heating up in fintech sector

Dec 31, 2015

Korea to see first Internet-only banks in 2016 as ICT-finance convergence gains momentum
Restructuring boon for M&A market

Dec 31, 2015

Spurred by restructuring of industries and the government’s move to ease regulations, Korea’s mergers and acquisitions are expected to see another boom in 2016 after 2015, when M&A deals reached an all-time high, dealmakers said. Amid a prolonged global economic downturn, a growing number of Korean firms, once used to pursue the octopus-style business diversification, are now move to streamline their business portfolio to concentrate on their flagship businesses through M&A deals. (123rf)In 2015
Gov't puts 19 troubled big firms on restructuring list

Dec 31, 2015

South Korea's financial watchdog said Wednesday it has picked 19 large companies to be placed under debt restructuring this year as part of efforts to prevent a sudden default in major industries.It is the result of the second inspection the Financial Supervisory Service carried out this year into 368 firms whose credit expansion surpassed 50 billion won ($42.59 million) and which show signs of going bust. Wednesday's decision brought the total number of companies subject to the forced restructu
Billionaires' stock value hits all-time high

Dec 31, 2015

The combined market value of stocks held by the top 100 stock-rich people surpassed the 100 trillion-won ($849.25 billion) mark for the first time, aided by a rise in stock prices of cosmetics and bio firms, data showed Thursday.According to data compiled by market researcher Chaebol.com, the country's top 100 stock-rich people held 103.83 trillion won worth of stocks as of Wednesday.The figure is equivalent to 8.3 percent of the total market capitalization and 27 percent of South Korea's budget
Corporate restructuring on rise

Dec 30, 2015

Companies placed under creditor-led restructuring has reached the highest count in recent years in 2015 and the number is likely to rise even further next year, Korea’s financial regulator said Wednesday. The 123-story Lotte World Tower in Seoul is lit up with LED lights on Tuesday. (Yonhap)According to the Financial Supervisory Service, 15 troubled large companies are to be put under creditor-led rehabilitation, in addition to 35 already undergoing forced restructuring. That pushed the total n
‘Korea needs harsher punishment on insurance fraud’　

Dec 30, 2015

(123RF)Korea Life Insurance Association, the country’s leading representative of the life insurance industry, called for stronger punishment for insurance fraud crimes. 　“Insurance fraud is a grave crime that undermines public interest, but its relatively weak penalties are fueling moral hazards among a wide range of ordinary people,” KLIA said in a press release. 　In 2014, authorities caught insurance fraud cases worth 600 billion won ($512 million), up 15.6 percent from a year ago. Yet that nu
Seoul shares down 0.31% in late morning trade

Dec 30, 2015

South Korean stocks traded 0.31 percent lower late Wednesday morning due to losses from steelmakers and construction firms.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 6.01 points to 1,960.30 as of 11:20 a.m.Steelmakers lost ground, with No. 1 POSCO falling 2.06 percent and Korea Zinc sliding 1.07 percent. Hyundai Steel shed 4.49 percent.Builders traded bearish, with Hyundai Engineering & Construction losing 1.2 percent and Daelim Industrial moving down 0.15 percent. GS Engineering & Con
Corporate restructuring needs pain sharing by all sides: finance minister

Dec 30, 2015

Corporate restructuring efforts aimed at bolstering South Korea's overall competitiveness should entail pain sharing by all interested parties, the top economic policymaker said Wednesday.Chairing his last meeting of economy-related ministers in Seoul, Choi Kyung-hwan said all restructuring efforts must be resolved in a speedy manner for the best possible effect."The government wants to push forward change, and it will insist on pain sharing by management, as well as workers," said the official,
Hyundai Motor Group ordered to cut cross-shareholding ties

Dec 30, 2015

South Korea's antitrust watchdog said Wednesday that it has ordered Hyundai Motor Group to resolve cross-shareholding ties derived from an intra-group merger and acquisition between its two steelmaking units, amid the agency's recent push to break the cobweb-like shareholding structures of conglomerates.Hyundai Steel Co. was merged with Hyundai Hysco on July 1 as part of the business restructuring scheme of Hyundai Motor Group, the country's second-largest business group and the parent of Hyunda
Two KB Financial units get new CEOs

Dec 29, 2015

Two subsidiaries of KB Financial Group will get new CEOs while six others will see their incumbent chiefs’ tenures extended, the country’s second-largest financial group by assets said Tuesday. The new appointments are Yang Jong-hee, a former vice president of KB Financial who will take charge of KB Insurance, and Yoon Woong-won, another former KB Financial vice president who will lead KB Kookmin Card. The appointments are subject to final endorsements by shareholders of the respective companies
Citibank opens high-tech wealth management center

Dec 29, 2015

Citibank Korea CEO Park Jin-hei operates the bank’s interactive touch screen kiosk. Citibank KoreaCitibank Korea has opened a wealth management center that features digital innovation and a wide array of services in downtown Seoul, the bank said Tuesday. The Citigold Banpo Center is equipped with intuitive touch screens and high-definition media walls to promote customer engagement with its products and services.The bank also expanded its asset management system by launching a new service called
Debt is Korea’s biggest economic problem: FSC

Dec 29, 2015

Yim Jong-yongFinancial Services Commission Chairman Yim Jong-yong pinpointed household and corporate debt as the biggest potential problems for the Korean economy, calling for “fierce reforms” to guard against them. “The debt problem, (particularly) of households and corporates, is the biggest risk to our economy,” the chief financial regulator said in his year-end press meeting in central Seoul, Tuesday. Korea’s economy faces multiple challenges, including an uncertain global economic outlook,
Debt is Korea’s biggest economic setback: FSC chief

Dec 29, 2015

Financial Services Commission Chairman Yim Jong-yong attends his year-end press meeting in central Seoul, Tuesday. (FSC)Financial Services Commission Chairman Yim Jong-yong pinpointed household debt and corporate debt as the biggest potential problems for the Korean economy, calling for “fierce reform” to guard against it. 　“The debt problem, (particularly) household debt and corporate debt, is the biggest risk in our economy,” the chief financial regulator said in his year-end press meeting in
Seoul shares edge up on pharmaceutical, retail gains

Dec 29, 2015

South Korean stocks rose marginally high on Tuesday, propped up by rallies in pharmaceutical and retail companies. The local currency lost against the greenback.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index added 2.25 points, or 0.11 percent, to end at 1,966.31. Trade volume was thin at 394.49 million shares worth 3.76 trillion won ($3.21 billion), with winners beating losers 461 to 368.The market started lower and moved in and out of positive terrain. Propping up the market are individual inv
Seoul shares down 0.3% in late morning trade

Dec 29, 2015

South Korean stocks traded 0.3 percent lower late Tuesday morning as institutional and foreign investors trimmed their holdings. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index lost 5.89 points to 1,958.17 as of 11:20 a.m.Tech giant Samsung Electronics was among marked decliners, trading down 1.73 percent. Bank and insurance companies also weighed on the market. SK Group shares traded bearish after media reports over its chairman's plan to divorce his long-estranged wife. SK Telecom plunged 5 pe