The two brokerage units under South Korea's Mirae Asset Financial Group have hired a large number of employees this year ahead of their planned merger despite the securities industry's slump, sources said Thursday.Mirae Asset Daewoo Securities Co., formerly KDB Daewoo Securities Co. owned by the state-run Korea Development Bank, completed the hiring of 59 new employees the previous day. Mirae Asset Securities Co. has also employed 141 new workers and career staff this year.In April, Mirae Asset

South Korea's state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., on Thursday signed a 2.4 trillion won ($2 billion) deal with seven institutional investors on the sale of Woori Bank, ending years-long attempts to privatize the state-owned bank.Under the deal, IMM Private Equity and Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. will take over 6-percent and 3.7-percent stakes, respectively, in Woori Bank. Hanwha Life, Tongyang Life Insurance Co. owned by China's Anbang Insurance Group Co., Eugene Asset Management Co.,

South Korea's state financial watchdog said Wednesday it has established a consolidated monitoring system for the nation's credit unions and other financial cooperatives.There have been difficulties in regulating the industry vulnerable to financial accidents and breaches, with 2,263 firms, mostly small, operating nationwide, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). A file photo of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives' building. (Yonhap)The FSS launched the Advanced Det

South Korea's recent local real estate market boom has been largely driven by a government policy to ease bank loan regulations, a report by a state-run think tank said Wednesday.Housing construction in the country has been accelerating for more than a year since the government lowered a set of financial regulations on home-backed household debts -- the debt-to-income (DTI) and loan-to-value (LTV) ratios -- in August 2014.As a result, new construction permits had grown for 16 months in a row unt

Deposits at cash management accounts rose to a record high this week, as investors stayed on the sidelines over a lackluster performance in stock markets, data showed Wednesday. A cash management account refers to a type of account offered by brokerage houses and other financial institutions that allows an account holder to trade equities while earning interest on cash balances. The net asset value of cash management accounts reached 53.1 trillion won ($45.5 billion) as of Tuesday, up 500 billio

Loan guarantees among affiliates of South Korea's large business groups sank in 2016 from a year earlier, the country's corporate watchdog said Wednesday.The total corporate debt payment guarantees made among units of 27 conglomerates reached 321.2 billion won ($274.5 million) as of April 1, down 24.8 percent from 426.9 billion tallied a year ago, according to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC). Corporate images of South Korea's 30 large business groups.The total number of conglomerates eligible to

South Korea’s state-run financier has established connections across Southeast Asia to export its know-how on development finance to other countries.The Korea Development Bank announced last week that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Sarana Multi Infrastruktur, or SMI, its Indonesian counterpart to open a local operational office named “Korea Desk” in Jakarta. The KDB’s Korea Desk will be installed in the headquarters of SMI, and the two banks agreed to work together on project f

The South Korean government will take market stabilization measures if interest rates in the local financial markets continue to soar amid rising possibilities of inflation and a US rate hike, the nation’s top financial regulator said Monday.Yim Jong-yong, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, said the global financial market could turn more volatile if US President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign pledges start to materialize.“There are concerns that market interest rates may continue to

Clinching contracts with new customers abroad has raised market watchers’ expectations on the growth of BHflex, a flexible printed circuit board provider based in South Korea. According to the financial industry on Monday, the company’s sales and operating profit for next year are estimated to surge compared to this year as it received new overseas orders. The FPCB manufacturer is forecast to post 376.1 billion won ($321.8 million) in sales by the end of the year, and 13.4 billion won in operati

South Korea said Monday it will step up efforts to close systemic loopholes in efforts to combat money laundering.The government plans to revise related legislation to cover lawyers, accountants, realtors and other professionals in non-finance sectors, according to the initiative by the authorities.Currently, only financial firms and casinos are subject to the law calling for the identification of customers, storage of relevant records and reporting of suspicious transactions.Yim Jong-yong, chai

South Korea's banks sharply increased their net profits in the third quarter of this year mainly on reduced costs, official data showed Monday.The combined net income of the banks here came to 3.2 trillion won ($2.7 billion) during the July-September period, up 151.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). It marks the highest level since they posted 3.3 trillion won in combined net income in the first quarter of 2012. A scene of banking services at a S

A bill was proposed stiffening monetary penalties and prison sentences for illegal stock trading made with inside information and price manipulation, people in the financial community said Monday.The bill submitted by Rep. Kim Young-joo of main opposition Democratic Party would allow monetary fines in the amount two to five times the sum of profit or evaded losses from such illegal trading, they said. The current law caps the fines at up to three times the amount involved.The proposed law also l