[THE INVESTOR] Following the Bank of Korea’s surprise cut in base interest rate last week, local banks have each been slashing their own rates for deposit and saving accounts. Citibank Korea’s easy-access deposit account for corporate clients has fallen into negative return territory after the bank slashed its annual interest rate to 0.001 percent from 0.1 percent on Tuesday. This means that a deposit of 10 million won ($8527) earns 1,000 won a year in interest, or 846 won after tax. Given that

CEO urges Korean parents to jointly invest in prospective stocks with their children

[THE INVESTOR] The prosecution raided the office and home of National Agricultural Cooperative Federation chairman Kim Byeong-won on June 17 on suspicion of illegal activities during the election campaign. The NACF is Korea’s largest agroindustry body that counts NongHyup Financial Group among its affiliates. Its chairman is elected among chiefs of regional branches who run for office.NACF chairman Kim Byeong-won.The prosecution suspects that Kim took part in illegal campaign activities during t

[THE INVESTOR] The Korea Development Bank is facing increasing heat over its part in the Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering crisis. Following the damning reports from the Board of Audit and Inspection, the KDB has come under fire for allowing the shipbuilder to reach critical conditions unchecked. As more of its malpractice comes to light, the possibility of a parliamentary hearing on the state-run policy bank has surfaced. On June 17, Rep. Kim Jong-in, the interim leader of the main opp

[THE INVESTOR] The latest financial regulations released by the government in efforts to secure foreign currency stability met with mostly positive responses from industry watchers.Regarding one of the key features requiring banks to raise their foreign exchange liquidity coverage ratio for banks, experts said the move would eventually lead to reinforcing the health of the banking sector. As a part of the stability plans, financial regulators said local banks will be required to raise their FX L

[THE INVESTOR] State-run Korea Development Bank officials used debtor companies’ funds for housing, vehicles and entertainment, audit results showed on June 15.According to the Board of Audit and Inspection, KBD officials dispatched to oversee management of companies undergoing restructuring used the companies’ funds for unnecessary conveniences and entertainment.The audit showed that 16 KDB staff received housing from seven companies they were sent to oversee, while 36 bank officials used vehic

[THE INVESTOR] The Export-Import Bank of Korea poured 1.8 trillion won ($1.5 billion) into an ailing shipbuilder for six years without keeping proper tabs on it, the Board of Audit and Inspection said on June 15. According to the BAI, the EXIM Bank neglected its duty in monitoring Sungdong Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co., 70.71 percent of whose shares are held by the bank. The shipbuilder has been under creditor-led restructuring since 2011. In laying out the recovery plans, the shipbuil

[THE INVESTOR] Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering’s current difficulties were fueled by neglect by its biggest shareholder Korea Development Bank, the Board of Audit and Inspection announced on June 15. According to the BAI, the state-run bank neglected its duty in monitoring the shipbuilder’s accounts and financial stability. The KDB holds 49.7 percent of DSME, making it the biggest shareholder as well as the shipbuilder’s main creditor.  Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering.Accor

[THE INVESTOR] Lotte Card has begun restructuring process, a local daily reported on June 14. The move comes while the authorities are turning up the heat on Lotte Group in an expanding corruption probe. Since June 10, the prosecutors’ office has been raiding Lotte Group offices and questioning officials over alleged embezzlement. According to the news report, Lotte Card launched a voluntary retirement scheme on June 14 in a move unusual for a Lotte firm. Employees above the age of 45 and those

[THE INVESTOR] On Nov. 11, 2010, with just 10 minutes for the stock market to close in Seoul, traders of Deutsche Bank dumped 2.4 trillion won ($2.05 billion) worth of Korean shares, triggering a 2.7 percent drop on the country’s main KOSPI index. The massive and coordinated sell-off by Deutsche employees in Hong Kong and Seoul wiped out 28 trillion won in value from Korea’s equity market, but the German bank reaped a profit of 44.9 billion won through derivative positions it had built in advanc

[THE INVESTOR] Key suspects in Korea’s biggest stock price manipulation case are living a not-so-secret life in Hong Kong and Australia, while Korean prosecutors have made hardly any efforts to bring them to justice, an investigation by The Korea Herald has found.The suspects are Derek Ong and Phillip Lonergan, two of the three former Deutsche Bank employees facing criminal charges in Korea in relation to a 2010 stock rout. Local authorities have failed to extradite the three -- nationals of the

[THE INVESTOR] Attention is now focused on who chairman Park Hyeon-joo will name as his successor at Mirae Asset Financial Group. The founder, openly critical of Korea’s large family-owned conglomerate’ father-to-son transfer of throne, has on multiple occasions said he will not pass down the group’s control to his children. 　　Local media paid keen attention, however, when Park Ha-min, Park’s eldest daughter, joined Mirae Asset Global Investments in 2013 to learn the ins and outs of real estate

[THE INVESTOR] Park Hyeon-joo is recognized as the brains behind the launch of Mirae Asset, one of Korea’s first asset managers to launch mutual and real estate trust funds in the country. Park Hyeon-jooAs the founder and chairman of the firm, Park -- a graduate of Korea University in business administration -- worked his way up the corporate ladder in brokerages, and gained keen trading sensibility. But like any great entrepreneur who has changed the world, Park was not alone in his quest for f

Mirae Asset chief’s expansionist strategy draws mixed response