The price of a bitcoin hit another record high, both in local and global exchanges, buoyed by the expectation for the highly anticipated public listing of US crypto exchange Coinbase Global. Bitcoin prices rose to above 82 million won ($73,000) on domestic exchanges early Wednesday, while the coin’s price on overseas exchanges reached new heights at $63,742 per unit. The prices for Ethereum, the second-largest digital coin by market capitalization, also touched its highest points, risin

A looming legal battle between a top insurance firm and an issuer of derivative-linked securities raises concerns over the financial product -- whose underlying asset, a trade finance fund, had deferred redemption. Samsung Life Insurance, which sold over 53 billion won ($47 million) worth of DLS products through a privately pooled fund, is awaiting court proceedings against NH Investment & Securities, the brokerage firm that issued the DLS for the seller, the company said Wednesday. A Sa

Women accounted for merely 7 percent of the management boards of financial institutions in South Korea, despite making up nearly half the sector’s workforce, data submitted to a lawmaker showed Wednesday. The number of women who hold executive positions in 444 financial institutions stood at 358, or 7.4 percent of the entire executive pool of 4,855 as of end of last year, according to Financial Supervisory Service data submitted and distributed by the minor progressive Justice Party Rep.

South Koreans' overseas stock transactions touched a new high in the first quarter of the year on brisk investment in US tech firms, data showed Wednesday. Local investors' trading of overseas shares was valued at $128.51 billion in the January-March period, up 96.5 percent from three months earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository (KSD). It represents the largest quarterly amount since data tracking began in 2011. The figure covers overseas stock purchases and sales

Driven by corporate demand for alternative offices amid the pandemic, WeWork Korea’s revenue last year jumped 20 percent, the highest of all branches of the US co-working space firm worldwide, its new chief said. Without providing exact numbers, Patricia Chun, WeWork Korea’s general manager, said the Korean office is the only WeWork branch in the world to see 20 percent revenue growth during the peak of the pandemic last year, while the New York and London locations hemorrhaged mo

South Korean stocks opened higher Wednesday on eased inflation woes and better-than-expected job data. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 3.86 points, or 0.12 percent, to 3,172.94 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Investors' sentiment improved after the country reported the first job additions in 13 months in March in the latest sign that the employment market is recovering. Also, overnight advances in the US stock market boosted appetite for risky assets. In

The growing influence of YouTube stock investing channels could have a negative impact on investors’ decisions as well as the stock markets, a study showed on Tuesday. Nam Gil-nam, senior research fellow at Korea Capital Market Institute, said during a seminar titled “The implication of growing retail investors” that information from YouTube channels could distort investors’ decisions. Using an analysis of two YouTube investment channels, Nam suggested that stock pric

Blockchain professionals and experts flocked to Seoul on Tuesday to discuss the latest trends surrounding digital assets. Topics at the seminar, dubbed World Blockchain Summit Marvels Seoul 2021, revolved around wealth transfers with the arrival of digital assets, digital transformation in the world of finance, blockchain-driven business models and regulatory hurdles, as well as the world of decentralized finance. Digital asset wallet developer Bitberry’s Chief Executive Officer Yoo Ja

Credit card issuer Samsung Card said Tuesday that it has delivered a presentation on how it is using artificial intelligence in marketing and customer analysis at an online tech conference held by chipmaker Nvidia. The online Nvidia GPU Technology Conference, which began in 2009, is an event where developers, researchers, and officials from private companies around the world share trends and information on AI, machine learning and supercomputing technologies. In its online presentation avai

South Korean brokerage firm Mirae Asset Securities is betting big on global startups going public on US stock markets. Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing recently submitted its regulatory filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission for its debut on the New York Stock Exchange. According to Bloomberg, the company’s estimated valuation stands at nearly $100 billion. When Mirae Asset invested about 300 billion won ($266.65 million) in the firm in 2018, it was valued at $56 billi

South Korean stocks rose for the second straight session Tuesday on hopes for better earnings amid a global economic recovery. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 33.49 points, or 1.07 percent, to close at 3,169.08. Trading volume was moderate at about 1.7 billion shares worth some 16.1 trillion won ($14.3 billion), with gainers outnumbering losers 477 to 358. Foreigners bought a net 445 billion won, while retail investors p

S. Korean crypto exchanges in their heyday on hike in transaction fees

Global investment bank raises upper-end target band for Kospi to 3,250 points

South Korean stocks opened higher Tuesday as investors pin their hopes on a fast global economic rebound ahead of the earnings season. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) rose 17.6 point, or 0.56 percent, to 3,153.19 points in the first 15 minutes of trading. Stocks got off to a strong start despite increased valuation pressure as brokerages projected strong quarterly performances by local big-name companies. Investors are also relieved by the US Federal Reserve chairman'

South Korea’s tech-heavy Kosdaq ended at a two-decade high on Monday, surpassing a 1,000-point threshold on rallies of secondary battery and bio shares. The secondary index ended trading at 1,000.65 points, up 11.26 points or 1.14 percent, from the previous session’s close. Both foreign and institutional investors purchased a net 36.2 billion won ($32.17 million) and 100 million won, respectively, while retail investors dumped 19.5 billion-won worth of shares. Among the top 10 l