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Korea secures No. 7 stakeholder in IDB’s NewCo

Dec 6, 2015

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Sunday that Korea would increase its current 0.221 percent stake in an investment unit of the Inter-American Development Bank to 4 percent. 　This will make Korea the seventh-largest global shareholder, and the second-largest nonregional shareholder after China at 4.5 percent, of NewCo., a soon-to-be launched development finance institution under the Washington-based IDB for private sectors. 　“We could secure larger stakes than we had expected, thanks to
[Design Forum] Design changes lives for physically impaired

IndustryDec 2, 2015

Swinging-door bathtubs (Chung Joo-won/The Korea Herald)Universal Design Expo was launched Wednesday to display some of the latest technologies and art objects with “universal designs,” or designs that all walks of life including the physically impaired can enjoy. 　On display from Dec. 2-6, the main exhibition of Seoul Design Week 2015 consists of 11 experience zones, seven “life experience zones” and four “transportation experience zones.” 　The life experience zones include five experience-yours
Seoul eyes opportunity in yuan's SDR status

Dec 1, 2015

South Korea’s Finance Ministry expressed optimism Tuesday for an increase in the nation’s exports to China after the International Monetary Fund announced it would add the Chinese yuan to its special drawing rights currency basket. “As a preemptive measure for potential globalization of the Chinese yuan, the Korean government has built up strong bilateral cooperation with China in monetary and financial policies, in addition to continued efforts to increase usage of the Chinese currency in the d
Kyobo Life chairman donates W2b to youth job fund

Nov 30, 2015

Kyobo Life Insurance chairman Shin Chang-jae (Kyobo Life Insurance)Kyobo Life Insurance chairman Shin Chang-jae vowed to donate 2 billion won ($1.7 million) out of his own pocket to a government-led youth job fund, the company said on Monday.　Shin’s donation comes after 1,824 Kyobo Life Insurance officials collected about 200 million won for the Youth Hope Fund. 　“The officials joined hands to help the young job seekers, the future of this nation, to overc
[Weekender] Advertisers walk thin line between ethics and freedom of expression

Social affairsNov 27, 2015

TV personality and lawyer Kang Yong-suk appears on the controversial “I sue you” advertisement poster that was voluntarily taken down in October. (Kang Yong-suk’s blog)The “right to advertise,” despite the powerful support of the right to free speech, is now facing a new challenge. 　Kang Yong-suk, a TV personality and lawyer at Next Law, recently triggered the controversy with a poster of himself roaring “I sue you!” 　What was meant to be a witty ad was taken down shortly after concerns emerged
KB Financial pledges to become fintech pioneer

Nov 27, 2015

KB Financial Group vowed on Friday to broaden the scope of its technology-based services to lead the country’s financial technology industry. 　It said in a press release that “KB Starters Valley,” a project to foster promising fintech start-ups launched in March, is now on track, attracting wide attention from the financial and fintech industry scene. 　The project is aimed at providing a total fostering solution for selective fintech start-ups, such as offering office space, investment relations
Woori celebrates 200th overseas branch opening

Nov 26, 2015

Woori Bank celebrated the opening of 200th overseas branch on Thursday, widening the scope of Korean financial industries on the foreign soil. 　“The opening of 200th global branch is the fruit of Woori’s successful adaptation to financial environments of different countries,” Woori Bank president Lee Kwang-goo said at a launching ceremony in Seoul for the new branch in Myanmar.　The ceremony was attended by Financial Services Commission chairman Yim Jong-yong, Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. presid
Household credit hits all-time high in Q3

Nov 24, 2015

(123RF)South Korean household credit, or credit purchases and loans extended by financial institutions, reached an all-time high of 1,166.4 trillion won ($1.01 trillion) as of September, fueling concerns the country’s household indebtedness is outpacing the economy. 　According to the Bank of Korea’s latest quarterly report released Tuesday, household credit in the July-September period grew 3.0 percent, the same as in the previous quarter, when the growth rate hit its highest in 4 1/2 years.　Hou
Korea to hire substitutes for officials’ parental leave

BusinessNov 23, 2015

Amid rising applications for parental leave, the South Korean government will hire more substitute workers to fill in for civil servants on parental leave, the Finance Ministry said Monday. 　Starting next year, the government will raise the substitution rate of those on parental leave to 80 percent from the current 60 percent, the Finance Ministry said in a press release. This will create 1,000 new jobs, the ministry said. 　The number of employees of government institutions taking parental leave
International marriages fall to 12-year low

Nov 19, 2015

The number of international marriages of a Korean and foreign spouse is on a steady decrease, along with falling divorce and childbirth rates among multicultural families, the state-run statistics agency said Thursday.　According to a multicultural family report compiled by Statistics Korea, the number of international marriages stood at 24,387 in 2014, the lowest since 2003. It fell 9.5 percent from a year earlier, showing a steady annual decline since 2008. 　The steady decline has been attribut
Woori Bank launches first smartwatch wiring service

BusinessNov 19, 2015

(Woori Bank)Woori Bank said Thursday it has launched the country’s first smartwatch money transfer service for Android-based smartwatches. 　Dubbed the “Woori Watch-banking Simple Money Transfer Service,” the smartwatch banking service runs on the “WiBee Mobile Pay” program, developed independently by the South Korean lender in May. 　The service does not require a digital authorized certificate or security code card, as smartphone banking services do. By simply typing in their pin number, bank cu
FSC to limit ‘high’ insurance payments for high-end cars

Nov 18, 2015

(123RF)South Korean financial authorities are pushing to reduce the “excessive” insurance payments to owners of high-end cars involved in an accident, officials said Wednesday.　For this, the Financial Services Commission plans to change relevant regulations on the insurance-covered repairing and compensation of damaged vehicles.　“The rising number of luxury cars, especially the foreign-brand vehicles, has triggered a number of unfair practices in car insurance coverage,” said FSC director Lee Do
Internet banks given grace period for financial soundness requirements

Nov 17, 2015

(123RF)Financial authorities have decided to give a three-year grace period to the nation‘s first Internet-only banks to meet financial soundness requirements in a move to nurture the new financial industry. 　The Financial Services Commission said Tuesday that the Internet-only banks will face lower financial soundness requirements compared to their brick-and-mortar peers. 　The grace period, which will end in 2019, aims at giving the new banks time to lodge themselves in the financial market tha
[Photo News] Combat female cancer

Nov 17, 2015

COMBAT FEMALE CANCER -- AIA Life Korea CEO Daniel L. Costello (fifth from left) poses with Ewha Womans University Cancer Center for Women chief Paik Nam-sun (sixth from left), officials and a female patient after delivering a 180 million won ($154,000) donation fund for female cancer patients. (AIA Life Korea)
Performance pay at local banks triggers resistance

Nov 16, 2015

(123RF)In an effort to boost the competitiveness of domestic banks, financial authorities have decided to introduce a performance-based evaluation and to gradually discontinue the conventional salary class system, starting with state-run banks within the year.　Labor unions, however, are arguing that the performance-related pay is incompatible with the banking industry.　The Financial Services Commission said Monday that it will announce within the year a set of plans to expand the performance-bas