SK Telecom, South Korea’s leading telecommunications carrier, on Monday said it has secured new partnerships with three IT companies based in Southeast Asia, aiming to boost the number of global users of its metaverse platform, ifland. Launched in 2021, SKT's ifland is a metaverse platform where users can build their digital avatars to interact in virtual spaces. Eyeing the global market, the South Korean telecom company inked three memoranda of understanding with Celcom Digi, the lar

South Korea’s Industry Ministry on Friday said it launched a new strategic partnership with Brazil, to enhance trade ties and investment cooperation in green energy and digital technology sectors. During the Vice Minister of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services Marcio Elias Rosa’s two-day visit to Seoul, he met with Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun to sign the “Korea-Brazil Trade and Investment Promotion Framework,” or TIPF, in Seoul, Friday. “We will deepen the

South Korean steel giant Posco Group marked the 10th anniversary of the Posco 1% Foundation, the group's social outreach body, highlighting the voluntary participation of employees and executives as the key to long-running donations. Established in 2013, Posco 1% Foundation is financed by its employees who make regular donations using 1 percent of their monthly wages. As of 2023, over 98 percent of Posco’s workers are participating in programs to help support underprivileged communi

Shinhan Bank said Wednesday that it has signed an agreement worth 1 billion pounds ($1.25 billion) with the United Kingdom Department for Business and Trade to invest in the country's infrastructure and environmental sectors. On Tuesday, the memorandum of understanding signing ceremony took place with the attendance of British Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch and Shinhan Bank CEO Jung Sang-hyuk, at the mayor's residence in London. Under the deal, the Seoul-based bank will inv

South Korean design software developer Zyx Technology said Wednesday that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Sungkyunkwan University to donate its own developed computer-aided design (CAD), dubbed “ZYXCAD.” Under the agreement, the ZYXCAD program, worth 1 billion won ($770,000), will be available free of charge to college students and academic staff for the next three years. The signing ceremony was held at Sungkyunkwan University College of Engineering building in Suwo

Golfzon, the nation’s leading virtual golf simulator company, strives to grow together with workers by achieving work-life balance via diverse employee benefits as well as environmental, social and corporate governance-centered management. This year, Golfzon started to focus on a mental health assistance service dubbed Maum Care. “Maum” meaning heart or mind in Korean, the newly launched program provides employees with counseling and psychotherapy opportunities, helping boost m

South Korean builder Daewoo Engineering & Construction said Tuesday that Chairman Jung Won-ju has recently concluded a weeklong business trip to Nigeria, in his ongoing push for business expansion abroad. While Korea's local construction market is facing uncertainty, Jung headed to Africa to fulfill his role as a “salesman” representing Daewoo E&C, the builder said. “The chairman’s visit to Nigeria, where diverse planned city projects are actively carried out

Hana Financial Group on Monday announced the establishment of South Korea’s first privately led “venture fund of funds” with an investment of 100 billion won ($77.44 million). The announcement follows the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ proposal last year to expand funding for venture capital and boost the startup industry together with the private sector. The launch ceremony, which was attended by SMEs and Startups Minister Lee Young and Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham

Alternative nicotine products can have a "significant" impact on reducing smoking rates as demonstrated by case studies in Japan and Sweden, a report showed Friday. In a policy paper dubbed “Safer Nicotine Works,” Tholos Foundation said it has found that alternative nicotine products, ranging from snus, nicotine pouches and gum to vapes and tobacco heating products, help people quit smoking cigarettes. Japan saw smoking rates, those that smoked cigarettes daily, decline fro

Hyundai Motor will become the first automaker to sell cars on Amazon, the company said, announcing a strategic partnership with the US e-commerce giant at a motor show Thursday. The two companies unveiled their plan at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show in a joint showcase, with Jose Munoz, global chief operating officer at Hyundai Motor Company, and Marty Mallick, Amazon’s vice president for Worldwide Business and Corporate Development, delivering the presentations. “This ideal partners

SK hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip maker, won this year’s R&D 100 Awards, also known as "the Oscars of innovation," with its cutting-edge Key Value Computational Storage Drive (KV-CSD), the company said Friday. Among the 100 winners of the 2023 R&D 100 Awards, which recognizes the most promising products or technologies that will bring change to the industry, SK hynix marked its name in the IT/Electrical category. “Once commercialized, KV-CSD wil

Korean Water Resources Corp., or K-water, on Thursday declared its new vision to be that of a “global water corporation leading solutions for climate change,” with the aim of promoting the nation’s green industry and providing people with clean water resources. On Thursday, CEO Yun Seog-dae announced the corporation’s new management principles for a “new age of water,” in response to rapid climate change, at K-water headquarters in Daejeon. As a corporation th

South Korean food manufacturer Samyang Foods said Thursday it posted new record sales of 13 billion won ($10 million) on this year’s Singles Day, a Chinese shopping festival celebrated every year on Nov. 11. The figure is a jump of 39 percent from a year ago, beating the previous record high of 11 billion won in 2021. Of the total earnings, 8 billion won came through e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD, while short-video platforms Douyin -- China’s version of TikTok -- and Kuaishou as w

Han Sung Motor, the largest Mercedes-Benz car dealer in Korea, is ramping up efforts to carry out diverse corporate social responsibility activities, buoyed by the voluntary participation of employees. As ESG efforts continue to emerge as key corporate principles, Han Sung Motor is giving back to society via eco-friendly volunteering as well as activities for underprivileged people, the company said. On Nov. 7, 53 employees of Han Sung Motor's after-sales service department gathered at Yeou

Hana Financial Group on Monday held a conference for Hana Waves, an in-house program to nurture future female leaders, to share the stories of nearly 100 leaders produced through the program over three years. Under the slogan “Women’s Actions, Voice, Emotion,” Hana started the first Hana Waves program in 2021, hoping to boost female leaders to steer the group’s future. As part of the group’s gender diversity efforts at the C-suite level, members of the first series