Under President Park Geun-hye’s commitment to improving the livelihood of ordinary citizens, the state financial regulator will launch a task force to crack down on irregular practices haunting financial consumers.The task force, dubbed the Financial Consumer Protection Planning Team, is scheduled make its debut in the coming weeks, the Financial Services Commission said Wednesday.“Over the next 12 months, the planning team will carry out special duties involving looking into the overall irregul

The Financial Services Commission is facing a backlash from civic groups as its project to revamp the nation’s regulatory system appears to be focused on expanding its own authority rather than on strengthening consumer protection.In its recent report to the presidential office, the state regulator said it was considering spinning off the consumer protection board from the Financial Supervisory Service, an executive arm of the FSC.Though the spinoff plan nominally features policymakers’ willingn

Officials say two more bodies were discovered overnight after a runaway train carrying crude oil derailed in eastern Quebec, igniting explosions and fires that destroyed a town's center. That brings the confirmed death toll to three.Quebec provincial police lieutenant Michel Brunet said Sunday says that fires are preventing rescuers from reaching parts of the train on fire, and that some of the other people who are missing are likely dead.Police are still not saying how many other people are mis

Some residents warily eyed the driverless "ghost train" as it rushed through the Quebec countryside. The train derailed, crashed into this small town, engulfing the downtown area in flames.Now scores of people -- perhaps as many as 80 -- are missing.Rescuers cautiously entered the charred debris Sunday, more than 24 hours after the spectacular crash that saw flames shoot into the sky and burn into the night.The accident and resulting huge fireball forced 2,000 people from their homes. Witnesses

Venezuela's foreign minister says his country has not yet been in contact with NSA leaker Edward Snowden, despite its offer of asylum.Elias Jaua says he expects to consult on Monday with Russian officials. Snowden is believed to be in the transit area of a Moscow airport.Jaua's comments came Saturday during a Caribbean summit in Trinidad and Tobago. They were distributed by his office.President Nicolas Maduro announced Friday that he would grant asylum to Snowden. Bolivia and Nicaragua have said

Israel's Cabinet has approved a plan that would gradually end a contentious system that has granted automatic draft exemptions to Jewish ultra-Orthodox seminary students.Under a longstanding system, thousands of young men are allowed to skip compulsory military service to pursue religious studies. This has caused widespread resentment among secular Jewish Israelis.The new system, which needs parliamentary approval, would reduce the number of exemptions and require ultra-Orthodox men to register

Kim Jong-shin, former chief of the state-run Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co., was put behind bars Sunday on charges of taking 100 million won in bribes from one of the company’s contractors.Busan District Court on the day issued an arrest warrant for Kim.While Kim resigned a year ago before his term expired amid simmering criticism over power outages, the prosecution recently expanded its investigation into irregularities involving a parts supplier to KHNP’s nuclear plants.Operations had been

KB Financial Group ranked 68th on the list of the world’s 100 largest banks by core capital, the highest spot among local lenders, the Bank of Korea said Sunday.Citing the July edition of the London-based Banker magazine, the central bank BOK said a total of six Korean banks made the world’s top 100 list as of the end of 2012. The five other financial groups were KDB, Woori, Shinhan, Hana (plus Korea Exchange Bank) and NongHyup.KB Financial saw its core capital come to $19.2 billion at the end o

Chinese citizens mourned the deaths of two teenage girls killed after a South Korean-owned passenger jet crashed at San Francisco airport Sunday as survivors recounted harrowing details of their tragic flight.Chinese nationals made up 141 of the 291 passengers aboard the Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 which burst into flames after it landed short of the runway, injuring 182.The two dead were Chinese girls born in 1996 and 1997, state broadcaster CCTV said.As of Sunday afternoon the Chinese consulate

The National Tax Service said Thursday that it would implement taxation on the cross-affiliate deals in the business sector this month.The tax agency plans to impose gift taxes on some 10,000 individuals including owners of businesses ― which offered exclusive benefits to affiliates or subsidiaries ― and the owners’ friendly powers.Among tax authorities’ targets are owners of major conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, GS and LG.Some of them have been under close monitoring from the

The Korean unit of Deutsche Bank AG may be placed under prosecutors’ investigation for business irregularities, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.An FSS official said the regulator, in consultation with the Financial Services Commission, referred the financial firm Thursday to the prosecution for breaching the laws on financial investment, issuing an “institutional warning” against the Seoul branch and reprimanding its branch manager and eight other employees.The Deutsche Bank Seoul

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok on Wednesday played down some economists’ worries that the nation’s household sector is facing a crisis due to its collective heavy debt.Top financial regulatory officials ― Shin Je-yoon and Choi Soo-hyun ― and central bank governor Kim Choong-soo shared Minister Hyun’s view during the National Assembly’s hearing on the outstanding loans to the household sector in Seoul.The policymakers reiterated that the growth pace in the financial firms

Ahead of the coming bid competition for Woori Financial Group units, KB Financial Group is set to revamp its business structure to secure its position as a well-prepared potential acquirer.As the initial step, KB Financial is expected to carry out a full-scale personnel reshuffle after its new chairman nominee Lim Young-rok takes office on July 12, group officials said Tuesday.The financial firm, whose flagship is KB Kookmin Bank, is mentioned as one the few powerful contenders for the state-fun

A total of 205 borrowers will call for the nation’s financial regulator to conduct an investigation into the nation’s first-tier banking industry on allegations that commercial banks manipulated some interest rates, the Korea Consumer Agency said Monday.This will mark the first such case since the Financial Supervisory Service implemented the “consumer-initiated” inquiry system last May. KCA said it will file a petition with the regulator against banks on Tuesday.In a statement, the consumer adv