The government received more than 5,600 complaints in the three days after it opened a call center last Wednesday to help victims of loan sharks, the nation’s top financial regulator said Sunday.The government last week announced plans to root out illegal private lenders that exploit low-income households with poor credit ratings. The reported cases involved illegal high-interest loans, mortgage fraud, coercive debt collection and voice phishing.The FSS has extended the reporting hours by three

U.S. finance regulators said 21-year-old twins from Britain sold investors on a fraudulent computer program they said would make investment choices.The brothers Alexander and Thomas Hunter created a newsletter called Doubling Stocks and sold investors on a robot program called Marl, which made their investment decisions, The Financial Times reported Saturday.The Securities and Exchange Commission

South Korean stocks fell 1.26 percent on Friday due to disappointing U.S. job and technology sector data and eurozone concerns, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 25.21 points to close at 1,974.65. Trading volume was moderate at 508 million shares worth 4.74 trillion won ($4.14 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 602 to 247.“Weaker-than-expected U.S. economic data related to the labor and housing markets and

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs announced on Thursday a formal open bidding document for a new KTX line, whose route involves Suseo, rekindling disputes over the privatization of the bullet train system. The plan confirmed the government’s resolve to allow private companies to run part of the train network. Opposition parties and civic groups, however, protested that the move is a step toward the privatization of KTX, which will lead to higher rates. The Suseo route of the K

South Korean stocks closed 0.23 percent lower Thursday due to lackluster U.S. corporate earnings, eurozone concerns and North Korea’s threat, analysts said. The local currency fell against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark KOSPI fell 4.67 points to close at 1,999.86. Trading volume was moderate at 405 million shares worth 4.02 trillion won ($3.52 billion), with losers outpacing gainers 534 to 299.“U.S. economic data is improving, but the slow pace of recovery, as seen by weak tech companies earnings

The number of South Korean corporate bankruptcies fell to a record low in March as more manufacturers and service-related companies stayed afloat than the month before, the central bank said Thursday. The number of companies that went insolvent after defaulting on promissory notes declined to 90 last month from 94 in February, the Bank of Korea said. “The change is so small, there is no distinct reason for the dip last month, although the country’s economy being able to pull off steady gains ami

Regulators to punish lenders for irregular loan issuance in MayCommercial banks will soon face a strict regulatory crackdown for possibly irregular practices in sales of “bancassurance” products, officials said.The Financial Supervisory Service plans to dispatch a group of inspectors to the headquarters of major banks such as Kookmin, Woori and Hana, starting in the coming weeks.In the same vein, several insurance companies, including Samsung Life and Korea Life, could be the target of close mon

South Korean stocks closed 0.97 percent higher Wednesday on strong U.S. corporate earnings and easing of Spain’s debt concerns, analysts said. The local currency rose against the U.S. dollar.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index gained 19.23 points to close at 2,004.53. Trading volume was light at 376 million shares worth 4.56 trillion won ($4.01 billion), with gainers outpacing losers 456 to 362.“Good U.S. corporate earning figures for the first quarter and signs that the housing mark

South Korean banks’ daily foreign exchange volume rose to the highest level in four years in the first quarter as banks handled more deals to cope with robust trade, the central bank said Wednesday.The daily foreign exchange trading volume among banks averaged $22.45 billion in the January-March period, up 7.8 percent from the preceding quarter, according to the Bank of Korea. It marked the largest daily turnover since the first quarter of 2008 when the trading volume hit $23.37 billion.“The tra

South Korean banks’ short-term overseas borrowing rose at a modest pace in March as lenders moved to secure foreign currency liquidity amid lingering global economic concerns, the financial watchdog said Wednesday.According to the Financial Supervisory Service, the spread on short-term foreign borrowing by local lenders stood at 15.3 basis points, a gain from 8.8 basis points in February. A basis point is 0.01 percentage points.The spread on mid- and long-term foreign borrowing that matures in f

Brokerage expects an upgrade to draw in foreign funds worth $12 billionIf South Korea is included in the MSCI advanced market index, as much as $12 billion worth of foreign investment could flow into the local stock market, a brokerage said on Wednesday.Daishin Securities said the chance for the inclusion of Korea in the prestigious index is higher than ever this year as the country’s bourse operator Korea Exchange worked out the KOSPI 200 index data rights with MSCI Inc. Korean shares account f

The International Monetary Fund raised its growth outlook for the world economy to 3.5 percent this year, reflecting the improving economic data for the United States and the softened concerns about the eurozone fiscal debt crisis. In the latest World Economic Outlook, the IMF said the sense of crisis has been eased to some extent. But it warned that the pace of the economic growth in emerging markets is slower than expected and worries over the eurozone problem continue, placing downside risks