Activist fund declares proxy fight against 7 local lenders, calls for them to raise dividend ratio to some 50%

South Korea's foreign reserves continued to expand for the second straight month in December as the weakening dollar resulted in a rise in the converted value of holdings denominated in other currencies, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's foreign reserves came to $423.16 billion as of end-December, up $7.06 billion from the previous month, according to the data provided by the Bank of Korea. The increase came as the dollar-converted value of other currency-based assets i

The new CEO of Shinhan Bank, one of South Korea's top four lenders by net profit, vowed to put customer-centric service and digital innovation first during his tenure. “Shinhan will manage its soundness through precise data analysis and protect customer value through timely support measures,” said Han Yong-gu, former deputy president in charge of sales management at the lender, who was inaugurated as CEO on Friday. Offering supportive measures for vulnerable debtors such as ow

KB's exclusive banking branch lures superwealthy parents who want a smooth transition of assets to their children

NongHyup Financial Group announced their affiliate CEO candidates, including NongHyup Bank, Thursday. The candidates were selected through a recommendation committee meeting held earlier in the day. The group has tapped Lee Seok-yong, a senior official in charge of planning and coordination at the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, as NongHyup Bank CEO. NongHyup Bank is an affiliate of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation. Lee joined the company in 1991 and has since been

Hana Bank on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding with Toss Securities, the brokerage arm of fintech company Viva Republica, to jointly provide around-the-clock service for foreign exchange trading. “Through continuous cooperation with various financial companies like Toss Securities, we will create a new trend in the foreign exchange market,” Hana Bank official Namgoong One said in a statement. According to Hana Bank on Friday, the bank will mainly provide exchange rate i

Lee Seung-lyul from now-defunct Korea Exchange Bank appointed as Hana Bank CEO candidate

Companies with higher involvement of foreigners and small investors are more likely to release more detailed corporate governance reports, demonstrating more transparency, the Korea Exchange said Tuesday. The Korea Exchange, the nation's sole bourse operator, released an analysis on the corporate governance reports of companies listed on the local stock market. As companies with assets between 1 trillion and 2 trillion won ($767 million to $1.53 billion) were required to release corporate

More than 70,000 people under the age of 30 are obliged to pay a gift tax for receiving assets in 2021, marking a two-fold increase from the year before, data showed Monday. According to Rep. Jin Sun-mee from the Democratic Party of Korea, 70,115 people under 30 are obliged to pay a gift tax for receiving land, properties or securities in 2021. Jin is a member of the Strategy & Finance Committee at the National Assembly and the data was provided by the National Tax Service. Jin argued the fi

Shinhan Bank President Jin Ok-dong, 61, has been appointed as the final candidate for the new chairman of Shinhan Financial Group, South Korea's No. 2 bank by total assets, Thursday. The group said that nonexecutive directors of the group unanimously voted for Jin at a candidate recommendation meeting held at the firm's headquarters in central Seoul. Other candidates were Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung and Shinhan Card CEO Lim Young-jin. Though it was rumored that cur

Seoul-based private equity house MBK Partners Founder and Chairman Michael Byung-ju Kim has been named one of the 15 “Asia’s Heroes of Philanthropy” by US business magazine Forbes for the second year in a row. He was the only Korean to make this year’s top philanthropist list. Kim was one of only three people -- the other two being billionaire brothers Ronnie and Gerald Chan who are the co-founders of Hong Kong’s Morningside Group -- to be recognized for two consecu

BOK says 50,000-won banknote has life span over 15 years, compared to 23 years of $100 and 41 years of 50-pound bills

Around 8,000 people have won first prizes for South Korea’s most popular lottery Lotto 6/45 in its 20 years of history, with their combined jackpot totaling 16 trillion won ($12 billion), according to the lottery commission on Monday. According to the Korea Lottery Commission, an organization under the Finance Ministry, the number of first prize winners of the Lotto reached 7,803 as of Nov. 26 this year since its debut back in 2002. On average, 7.5 people won first prizes per draw, which i

JB Financial Group has been honored with the ESG Excellent Company Award by the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability (KCGS) at the Korea Exchange in Yeouido, Seoul, on Friday. “We see this recognition as an opportunity to further strengthen our responsibility and role in taking the lead in sincere and advanced ESG management,” the financial group said in a statement. Since 2011, the KCGS has been evaluating local companies' performance in environment, soc

'Newly rich' in 30s, 40s account for 18.4% of wealthy Koreans