The money supply in South Korea jumped 6.9 percent in January from a year earlier, the central bank said Thursday.The nation's "M2" totaled 2,412.6 trillion won ($2.09 trillion) in January, compared with 2,264.6 trillion won a year earlier, the Bank of Korea said in a statement.Stacks of ten thousand won bills. (Yonhap)Month-on-month, the money supply gained 0.1 percent, the statement said.M2 is a measure of the money supply counting the currency in circulation, including bank debentures and dep

The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a ruling that fined Shin Sang-hoon, former president of Shinhan Financial Group, 20 million won ($17,300) for embezzlement. Shin Sang-hoon (Yonhap file photo)The 69-year-old Shin was indicted in 2010 on charges of embezzling 1.56 billion won in consultancy fees between 2005 and 2009, inflicting a loss of 43.8 billion won on the company through the provision of illegal loans between 2006 and 2007 and pocketing 860 million won in bribes from three Korean-Japane

South Korea's state-run deposit insurer said Thursday it has opened a branch office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to help recover local property assets once owned by bankrupt Korean savings banks.Cambodia has 78.5 percent of overseas assets, mostly bad debts, currently managed by the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., which has taken over from defunct savings banks.The sign of the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. in an undated file photo (Yonhap)Several South Korean savings banks made investments in project

A senior executive of KEB Hana Bank has quit for allegedly being promoted to his previous post with the backing of President Park Geun-hye's confidante, the lender said Thursday.KEB Hana Bank said it accepted the resignation submitted by Lee Sang-hwa, who was in charge of global sales at the major South Korean lender, on Wednesday.The logo of KEB Hana Bank (Yonhap)Lee had been relieved of his duties as of Tuesday.Lee's departure came just days after special prosecutors said that Park's longtime

South Korean stocks closed almost unchanged Wednesday as investors took to the sidelines ahead of a much-anticipated rate hike in the United States and on a growing spat between South Korea and China over the deployment of a US missile defense system here. The Korean won rose against the US dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index  moved up 1.36 points, or 0.06 percent, to close at 2,095.41. Trade volume was moderate at 375 million shares worth 4.38 trillion won ($3.82 billion), wi

Mirae Asset Daewoo Co., a leading brokerage firm in South Korea, was fined 2 billion won ($1.7 million) on Wednesday for skipping the reporting of its securities sale based on the Landmark 72 tower in Hanoi, Vietnam's tallest building.The Financial Services Commission made the final decision to punish Mirae, saying it failed to submit a report on the sale of asset-backed securities worth 300 billion won last year.The headqarters of Mirae Asset Daewoo in Seoul in a file photo. (Yonhap)There were

South Korea began full-fledged preparations Wednesday for a new global accounting regulation on insurers to take effect in the early 2020s.The International Accounting Standards Board is scheduled to introduce the rule, called IFRS17, on the accounting of insurance products in 2021 with detailed guidelines to be issued in May.A composite photo on insurance services provided by Yonhap News TV (Yonhap)Under the rule, insurers' liabilities will be assessed on the basis of market value, instead of b

The won's erratic movement against the dollar eased considerably in February from a month earlier as overall volatility in global foreign-exchange markets eased, central bank data showed Wednesday.The South Korean currency posted 6.8 won in daily value changes against the dollar in February, down from 7.7 won a month earlier, the Bank of Korea said in a statement. The won finished February trade at 1,130.7 against the greenback compared to 1,162.1 won at the end of January.Stacks of dollar bills

The volume of private equity funds in the South Korean capital market surged about 25 percent last year, pushing up the total funds at asset management companies to a record high level, a report by the nation’s financial regulator showed.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the total volume of funds at 165 asset management firms amounted to 907 trillion won ($788 billion) as of the end of 2016, up 11 percent from a year earlier. It was the first time that the number exceeded the 900 t

KEB Hana Bank, a major South Korean lender, said Wednesday it has relieved a senior executive of his duties for allegedly being promoted to his previous post with the backing of President Park Geun-hye's confidante.The bank said Lee Sang-hwa had been relieved of his duties as of Tuesday, adding it plans to hold a disciplinary committee to further punish him.The building of KEB Hana Bank (Yonhap)The move came a day after special prosecutors said that Park's longtime friend Choi Soon-sil helped to

Stocks of Doosan Infracore Co. traded at an almost yearly high on Wednesday as the country's leading construction equipment maker's business performance is expected to improve down the line, analysts said.  Doosan Infracore closed at 9,530 won ($8.30) on the Seoul bourse, down 0.83 percent from the previous session's close. On Tuesday, the company advanced 4.68 percent.Doosan Infracore is the country's leading construction equipment maker. (Yonhap)Analysts said stronger than expected sales of ex

Foreign investors continued a buying spree on shares of South Korea’s listed companies in February for the third consecutive month, pushing up their holdings of local stocks to a record high, the country’s financial watchdog said Tuesday. Foreign investors bought a net 658 billion won ($573 million) in shares on the local stock market in the month. Their holdings of local stocks of listed companies reached a record high of 503.4 trillion won at the end of February, accounting for 31.8 percent of

South Korea's top financial regulator said Tuesday the authorities will take tougher measures against accounting-related wrongdoings as part of its effort to enhance the transparency of the nation's corporate finance system.Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Committee, described accounting as the "mirror of the economy and a core infrastructure."Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Committee, speaks at a public hearing on accounting practices held at the National Asse

South Koreans have yet to claim 1.4 trillion won ($1.21 billion) in dormant financial assets despite the government's campaign to help them withdraw the money, the nation's watchdog said Tuesday.Since the Financial Supervisory Service announced a set of relevant measures in June 2015, a total of 6.42 million people have recovered 1.24 trillion won from such accounts through the end of January, according to the agency.Stacks of 50 thousand won bills (Yonhap)By the type of asset, insurance claims

South Korean banks' capital adequacy ratio edged up last year, helped by the government's new rule on the key measure of their financial soundness, the nation's watchdog said Tuesday.The average capital adequacy ratio of 17 major commercial and policy lenders in South Korea came to 14.92 percent at the end of 2016, up 1.01 percentage points from the previous year, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.Nation's major bank holding firms (Yonhap)Especially, the ratio rose 0.11 percentage p