The Korea Herald

Kim Yon-se

안녕하세요 Kim Yon-se 기자입니다.

Articles by Kim Yon-se

Ex-Shinhan chief given stock options

Mar 1, 2011

Shinhan Financial Group has granted stock options to its former chairman Ra Eung-chan, who resigned in October over alleged irregularities.Board members of the nation’s third-largest financial group recently endorsed a proposition that Ra be entitled to stock option rights, industry sources said on Tuesday.The stock options amounted to more than 300,000 shares. Considering the group’s stock price
FSC chief warns against trading fraud

Feb 24, 2011

Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Seok-dong pledged Thursday to toughen punishment on trading irregularities in the financial industry one day after the government partly suspended Deutsche Bank’s local unit for stock manipulation. Concerning the speculation that Deutsche Bank may pull its investments out of the Korean market, he told reporters, “I don’t care about that (on whether or not
Korea boosts accounting transparency

Feb 23, 2011

Number of accounting firms more than triples in 10 years as demand growsThe nation’s accounting transparency is approaching international standards after years of effort by financial regulators and businesses.Shoddy bookkeeping by large companies has been partly blamed for the economic crisis that hit the nation in the late 1990s and for the so-called Korea Discount ― referring to undervaluation o
No more savings banks suspensions: FSC

Feb 21, 2011

The nation’s chief financial regulator on Monday strived to calm jitters among savings banks’ clients amid the growing fears of a bank run.Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Seok-dong called them to refrain from withdrawing their deposits, which would make more banks face business suspension.His remarks came after a great number of depositors pulled out their cash from the secondary financ
BOK bolsters foreign currency team

Feb 21, 2011

The Bank of Korea plans to strengthen its foreign exchange department to more efficiently manage its ever-growing currency reserves and better cope with market volatility.The central bank announced plans to overhaul its organization for the first time in 13 years, focusing on slimming down departments and enhancing international affairs capability.The nation’s foreign currency reserves reached an
Fears of run on savings banks looming

Feb 21, 2011

FSC suspends 4 more second-tier banks 2 days after promising no new suspensions in H1Financial regulators’ ongoing crackdown on savings banks is increasing the chances of a bank run under which a great number of customers withdraw their deposits.The Financial Services Commission suspended operations of four more saving banks over the weekend, raising the possibility of a massive exit by depositors
Radioactive leak alert issued at Daejeon

Feb 20, 2011

A warning of a radioactive leak was issued at a state-run nuclear power research institute in the central city of Daejeon on Sunday, but no radiation leaked outside, institute officials said.The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, located 164 kilometers south of Seoul, said it sounded the warning at 2:32 p.m. as the radiation level of its research reactor, the 30 megawatt HANARO unit, surpasse
LG top brass hits the road for hands-on reviews

Feb 20, 2011

Troubled company’s CEO scans production lines at home and abroadLG Electronics’ top man Koo Bon-joon’s air mileage must be piling up at record speed with all the overseas trips he has logged since taking over the distressed electronics maker last September.Koo, 50, has been particularly travel-happy over the past few months, according to those close to the company, embarking on frequent trips to e
Two savings banks suspended as woes deepen

Feb 17, 2011

FSC orders 6-month business halt to Busan, Daejeon banksThe Financial Services Commission on Thursday suspended operations of two savings banks as part of its ongoing restructuring of the secondary banking sector hit by toxic construction debt.It also announced plans to provide a nearly 20 trillion won ($18 billion) credit line in support for other viable institutions. The regulator said it halted
Hana Financial CEO, Hana Bank cautioned

Feb 16, 2011

The Financial Supervisory Service reprimanded Hana Financial Group president & CEO Kim Jong-yeol and the group’s banking unit for irregularities on Wednesday.The regulator said it issued a “caution” against Kim, who had served for Hana Bank as CEO, for being careless about the bank’s investment in U.S. stocks and bonds in 2008. Kim Jong-yeolSeveral staffers of the bank were also subject to regulat
Shinhan starts work to restore image

Feb 15, 2011

New chairman to put group in gear for competition with KB, WooriHan Dong-woo, nominated to head Shinhan Financial Group, faces the daunting challenge of restoring the group’s reputation and mending in-house frictions. The former vice chairman of the group’s insurance unit was tapped as the next chairman of the nation’s third-largest financial group Monday.Shinhan has suffered a management crisis d
Shinhan, Woori pick chairman candidates

Feb 14, 2011

Shinhan Financial Group nominated Han Dong-woo, a former vice chairman of the group’s life insurance unit, as the single candidate for its chairman ship Monday.The nation’s third-largest financial group said its candidate selection committee picked Han out of the four potential candidates for the top post.Woori Finance Holdings Co., Korea‘s top financial services company, also named two candidates
30 conglomerates have 231 units in tax havens: data

Feb 14, 2011

More than one in 10 overseas corporations owned by Korea’s 30 major conglomerates are based in tax havens, a website reported on Monday.According to online data service provider chaebol.com, Korea’s 30 major business groups operate 231 subsidiaries in tax-havens such as Hong Kong, Luxembourg, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.Samsung Group topped the list with 38 units in tax havens including Hong Ko
Owner of the missing W1 billion identified

Social affairsFeb 11, 2011

The police are looking for a private lottery dealer in his 30s with the family name Kang for having stored 1 billion won ($980,000) in a Seoul warehouse under borrowed identification and fake phone numbers. The investigators suspect him to have accumulated the money as slush funds from running illegal lotteries. The case was discovered when Yeongdeungpo police received a report of suspected explos
Pyongyang turns to Seoul lawmakers for talks

PoliticsFeb 11, 2011

North Korea made another proposal for the resumption of talks with South Korea Friday, this time to Seoul's political parties, apparently as its chance of winning concessions from the Seoul government has nearly disappeared.The proposal came one day after the communist nation's military said it will no longer deal with the South Korean government, accusing the latter of lacking any willingness to