South Korea’s central bank said Thursday it has decided to join a global movement of financial regulators to set up standards for stablecoins, saying it would adopt the rules to the local market once they are introduced. Stablecoins are a form of cryptocurrency designed to have a stable value tied to traditional government-backed currencies, or to a commodity such as gold, to dodge the volatilities that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have. The Bank of Korea’s announcement com

Four metaverse-themed exchange-traded funds went listed for the first time on the country’s stock markets on Wednesday, betting on growing interest in the new IT platform. The four ETFs are KB Asset Management’s KBSTAR iSelect Metaverse, NH Amundi Asset Management’s Hanaro Fn K-Metaverse MZ, Mirae Asset Global Investment’s Tiger Fn Metaverse, and Samsung Asset Management’s KODEX K-Metaverse Active. Samsung Asset’s ETF product is an actively managed fund,

South Korean banks' household loans grew at a faster pace in September from a month earlier despite the government's toughened controls on lending, central bank data showed Wednesday. According to the Bank of Korea (BOK), outstanding bank loans to households came to 1,052.7 trillion won ($877.9 billion) as of the end of September, up 6.5 trillion won from the previous month. The figure is higher than a 6.1 trillion-won increase registered in August, the data showed. The reading also marked the

More South Koreans are dipping into their retirement pension pots to buy homes in expectation of future gain amid soaring housing prices, causing concern over the availability of secure retirement income, a lawmaker said Tuesday. The number of people who pulled out their money from their retirement accounts early stood at 71,931 in 2020, up 79.4 percent from the 40,091 tallied in 2016, according to Financial Services Commission data submitted to Rep. Chun Jae-soo of the ruling Democratic Party

New York-based property technology startup Market Stadium has raised 1 billion won ($834,400) in seed funding from venture capital houses in South Korea and abroad, the company said Tuesday. Taking part in the latest rounding were early-stage VC Kakao Ventures, financial backer Shinhan Capital and California-based Primer Sazze Partners. Angel investors including John Kim, co-founder of messaging-as-a-service startup Sendbird; and Scott Robinson, a clinical assistant professor at New York Unive

Lawmaker says people have different ‘starting lines’ in life according to parents’ wealth

Riiid, a South Korean artificial intelligence-based education tech company, has acquired Langoo, the Japanese distributor of its service, in an effort to expand its business in the world’s third-largest economy, the company said Saturday. The acquisition is coming less than five months after it secured $175 million in series D funding solely raised from Japan’s Softbank’s Vision Fund 2, and is part of the company’s broader strategy to expand through mergers and acquis

South Korean financial technology unicorn Viva Republica said Friday it has signed a deal to acquire a controlling 60 percent stake in mobility firm VCNC, known for premium ride-hailing app Tada, in its new rights offering. Viva Republica, which offers various financial services under its flagship Toss brand, said the takeover is aimed at expanding its financial services business and overhauling Tada’s embattled mobility service by the end of this year, the company said in a statement.

South Korea said Thursday it has sold about $1.3 billion worth of foreign exchange stabilization bonds at the second-lowest ever rates amid solid demand. The government sold US dollar-denominated bonds worth $500 million with a maturity of 10 years and five-year euro-denominated debts worth $700 million, according to the finance ministry. The dollar bonds carry a yield of 1.769 percent, or 25 basis points more than the rate of US 10-year Treasuries, while the euro bonds carry a yield of minus 0.

South Korean activist fund Korea Corporate Governance Improvement has bought 100 billion won ($84 million) in exchangeable bonds issued by weapon system developer LIG Nex1, a filing showed Wednesday. The investment is aimed at improving LIG Nex1’s performance under the criteria of environmental, social and governance responsibility and giving birth to LIG Nex1’s new line of business, according to KCGI. The investment manager did not elaborate on its future ESG strategy for the defe

Shinhan Financial Group said Wednesday it has decided to invest 18 billion won ($15.1 million) into three startups offering cutting-edge technologies as part of its bigger plan to boost the group’s digital capabilities. Three startups that attracted the funding include Galaxy Corp. which owns intellectual property rights to virtual characters for metaverse platforms as well as Xinapse, an artificial intelligence technology-based startup. Shinhan plans to collaborate with the firms to e

Toss Bank, South Korea’s third internet-only bank, commenced full operations on Tuesday, highlighting its user-friendly financial services that differentiate itself from rivals quickly expanding their presence in the emerging market. Under the slogan of “New Banking, New Bank,” the online-only lender showcased its convenient deposit banking and loan service fit for as many users as possible, including thin filers with little credit history and low-credit borrowers. “Ev

South Korea-based private equity firm Hahn & Co. is poised to cash in on 306.6 billion won ($258.1 million) from an initial public offering of a fully-owned secondhand car retailer K Car on Wednesday, according to a prospectus Tuesday. The deal is aimed at floating Hahn & Co.’s 25.5 percent stake, or 12.3 million shares, in K Car, plus 1.2 million new shares. The IPO price of K Car, which is valued at 1.2 trillion won, has been fixed at 25,000 won apiece. Hahn & Co.’s

Amid the rapid digital transformation brought on by the COVID-19 era, local banks have increasingly turned their backs on brick-and-mortar branches and automated teller machines, data showed Wednesday. The number of physical bank branches stood at 6,326 as of the end of June, down 10.9 percent from the end of 2016, when the figure came in at 7,101, according to data from the market watchdog Financial Supervisory Service submitted to Rep. Yoo Dong-soo of the ruling Democratic Party. Meanwhile,

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