The Korea Herald is publishing a series of interviews on promising startups in the financial technology industry. This is the 23rd installment. -- Ed.For about a decade before Chung Woo-young founded mobile biometrics developer startup Winningi in 2015, he was a forensic technician who worked for the National Police Agency in South Korea. He was engaged in the nation’s project to collect and manage some 56 million fingerprint records of residents in the nation with a population of 51.2 mil

The head of the financial watchdog on Tuesday called on financial firms to think about environmental and social issues in their investment decisions. Financial Supervisory Service Gov. Yoon Suk-heun made the remarks at a conference to discuss ways for Seoul to become a city of sustainable finance. Sustainable finance is a new watchword for investors that integrate environmental, social and governance issues into their investment decisions. Yoon said the South Korean government is playing a bigge

Banks will be required to implement a stricter screening rule for mortgage loans starting this month so as to better manage growing household debt, according to the head of the financial regulator Tuesday. Banks have applied for the so-called debt service ratio to almost all household loans on a pilot basis since earlier this year. The new rule will become mandatory later this month.DSR measures how much a borrower has to pay in principal and interest payments in proportion to his or her yearly

South Korea has clinched new investment deals totaling $600 million with firms in European Union countries, achieving the annual target for foreign direct investment, Seoul’s trade ministry said Monday.  The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said it secured the new deals with four EU-based companies at the investment roundtable it held in Paris. It came on the sidelines of South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s four-day state visit to France that ends Tuesday. Moon is cu

For South Korean financial companies looking out for new growth momentum, the “New Southern Policy” -- the key foreign economic policy of the Moon Jae-in administration -- came as a timely opportunity to create synergy with the fast-growing Southeast Asian market.The overseas net profit of domestic financial companies last year totaled $934 million, up 42 percent from a year earlier and exceeding 1 trillion won in Korean currency for the first time, the Financial Supervisory Service

South Korean stocks traded lower on Monday as investor sentiment remained subdued over the lingering trade tensions between the United States and China and rising US nterest rates.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index dropped 6.34 points, or 0.29 percent, to 2,155.51 as of 11:20 a.m. Market heavyweights were seeing bearish trade across the board as foreigners and institutions remained net sellers of foreign stocks, following a deep loss last week. Tech shares traded in negative terrain

South Korea's oceans ministry said Monday it will look into the feasibility of developing a port in Russia's Far East to help local companies take advantage of its strategic location.The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said it will carry out the feasibility study until September 2019 on the Port of Slavyanka, which borders North Korea and China. The ministry said the project is aimed at providing essential investment information to Korean companies, which have shown interest in development of t

South Korea's financial sector overall is not excessive in its size but it has grown to above adequate levels in terms of lending, a report said Monday.The research paper titled "Adequacy and Growth Effect of Finance in Korea," carried in the latest periodical from the Korea Institute of Finance, called attention to heavily concentrated loans to households compared to those for companies.Data from 2002 to 2016 shows an 8.1 percent yearly average rise in household loans, compared with a

South Korea's corporate watchdog said Monday that it will focus on reforming family-controlled business groups and promoting fair business practices.In a report to the National Assembly, the Fair Trade Commission said it aims to help foster innovation-led growth, as well as expand consumers' rights. The FTC said it plans to carry out probes into the practices which are blamed for allowing founding families of private conglomerates, called chaebol, to easily net large profits by having subsidiari

The percentage of household savings held by local lenders fell to the lowest level since 1975 in the first half of the year, as low interest rates caused people to invest their money in real estate and stocks, central bank data showed Sunday.According to the Bank of Korea, household savings made up 45.4 percent of all deposits in the January-June period. This represents a 1.2 percentage-point dip from a year earlier. At the same time, deposits by businesses have been on the rise.In the six-month

South Korea‘s top economic policymaker called on global ratings agencies to reflect the latest developments in inter-Korean relations when evaluating Seoul’s credit standing, the finance ministry here said Sunday.　It said Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon, who is in Bali, Indonesia, to take part in the Group of 20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meetings, met with representatives from Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor‘s (S&P) on Friday and Saturday. 　At the ta

South Korea will announce a set of measures later this month to help generate new jobs as it views the country's employment as being "at a critical situation" based on data, its finance minister said Sunday.  For job creation, the government will focus on encouraging businesses to make investments by easing regulations, supporting innovative growth in businesses, and providing customized jobs to local provinces and industries, Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon said in a meeting with

South Korea's jobless numbers in the third quarter surpassed the 1 million mark for the first time since the country struggled with the fallout of the Asian financial crisis, government data showed Sunday.   Numbers released by Statistics Korea showed the average monthly unemployment stood slightly over 1.06 million in the July-September period, up a sharp 102,000 from a year earlier.   This is the highest reading for the third quarter after the 1.33 million tallied in 1999,

South Korean stocks will likely move upward next week as big global events may ease the uncertainties that have bothered the financial market, analysts said Saturday.The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 2,161.85 on Friday, down 105.67 points, or 4.7 percent, from the previous week. Seoul shares started weaker on the first day of the week on a foreign selling binge. Investors were worried about lingering trade tensions between the United States and China and a faster-tha