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Anna J. Park

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.

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Banking & Finance

FSS calls on KakaoBank to improve emergency response measures

KakaoBank headquarters at Pangyo in Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province / NewsisBy Anna J. ParkThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has urged KakaoBank to revamp its disaster contingency planning, issuing management precautions and pinpointing areas of improvement. According to the FSS on Monday, the digital bank's annual disaster drills, conducted once every year, are not effective enough to counter emergency scenarios. “KakaoBank's business impact analysis (BIA) shows the digital bank falls short of prior consultation procedures among various business units, while the business continuity in banking and IT departments is to be managed separately. The bank also lacks a management report system in determining critical business activities in BIA, raising concerns about unclear accountability,” the FSS' official report on the matter reads, adding that the internet-only bank places a lower priority on real-time services for customers during business disruptions. The BIA refers to the process of determining the significance of business activities and resource requirements to e

Apr 10, 2023By Anna J. Park
FSS calls on KakaoBank to improve emergency response measures
Economy

Banks required to get approval for partial business closing from Sept.

The headquarters of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) in central Seoul / YonhapRevised banking act imposes stronger obligations on lendersBy Anna J. ParkBanks will be required to attain financial regulators' approval from September, when they partially close their businesses, or sell or acquire other banks' businesses, as part of government efforts to better protect consumers, according to the Financial Services Commission (FSC) on Sunday. The change comes with revisions to the country's Banking Act, which will take effect from Sept. 22 of this year, after a series of legislating procedures.The country's top financial regulator made the preannouncement of the revisions to the banking law on Sunday. The revisions are aimed at preventing cases like Citibank Korea's sudden decision in late 2021 to wind down its retail business in Korea, which raised consumer protection concerns. Under current banking law, lenders must attain approvals from financial authorities, only when they decide to close down their entire banking business in Korea. This framework did not allow financial regul

Apr 9, 2023By Anna J. Park
Banks required to get approval for partial business closing from Sept.
Economy

Sales of gold bars soar amid growing preference for safe assets

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkWith the price of gold peaking at its highest level in Korea, sales of gold bars at major local banks exceeded 2.49 billion won ($1.89 million) during the four days from last Monday to last Thursday. According to the local banking industry, the aggregate amount of gold bars sold at four major banks ― KB Kookmin, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup ― from April 3 to 6 stood at 2.49 billion won. It is more than 63 percent of gold bar sales at the banks during the entire month of March when gold bars amounting to 3.95 billion won were sold.The monthly sales of gold bars at the four major banks have been on a consistent rise this year, from 1.98 billion won in January, 3.29 billion won in February and 3.95 billion won in March. The surge in gold bar purchases at banks reflects local investors' increased preference for safe assets amid the jitters of global financial markets. The price of the precious metal ended at a record high of 86,330 won per gram on Friday at the gold market of the state-run Korea Exchange (KRX). The gold price at the KRX's gold market rewrote

Apr 9, 2023By Anna J. Park
Sales of gold bars soar amid growing preference for safe assets
Economy

FSS supports US State Department-led financial sanctions symposium

Charles Bruer, program advisor at Office of Cooperative Threat Reduction at the U.S. Department of State, speaks during a symposium on international sanctions regimes held at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Financial Supervisory Service (FSS)Financial watchdog vows to strengthen global networks on anti-money laundering By Anna J. ParkIn a move to raise the local banking sector's anti-money laundering (AML) capabilities and global networks, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) participated in a symposium hosted by the U.S. Department of State on Wednesday morning Korea time, along with 20 other local lenders. Titled “Navigating International Sanctions Regimes for Public and Private Sector Stakeholders Symposium: South Korea Perspective,” the event was part of the U.S. government's global project to strengthen cooperation among allies in the realm of transnational financial crime, which are often employed to evade international sanctions. The U.S. Department of State has been holding similar symposiums in various countries around Europe, Africa and Asia.

Apr 5, 2023By Anna J. Park
FSS supports US State Department-led financial sanctions symposium
Banking & Finance

MBK Partners' founder projects continued strong growth in Northeast Asia

MBK Partners Founder and Chairman Michael ByungJu Kim / Courtesy of MBK PartnersPE legend stresses health care and elderly care investment in Northeast AsiaBy Anna J. ParkMichael ByungJu Kim, the founder and chairman of MBK Partners, one of the largest private equity firms in Asia, stressed that he believes in the continued strong development of Northeast Asia's private equity markets. He also stressed the importance of taking a patient, long-term view to witness further growth in the region. In his annual letter to institutional investors of the private equity firm, Kim said the global economy has entered a new phase where investment exits have become more challenging with the plunges in asset prices globally. But he highlighted that this also provides more investment opportunities.“We believe in the continued strong development of the North Asian private markets, despite recent bumps in the road, especially in China. This approach requires patience,” Kim wrote in the letter. “The Asian private equity markets cannot be expected to grow in a leap to the West's penet

Apr 4, 2023By Anna J. Park
MBK Partners' founder projects continued strong growth in Northeast Asia
Economy

Financial watchdog strengthens supervision on banks' governance, internal controls

Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Senior Deputy Governor Lee Joon-soo speaks during a press conference held at the headquarters of the FSS in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapFSS to hold regular meetings with bank boards By Anna J. ParkThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), the country's financial watchdog agency, has once again urged the banking sector to equip itself with sound corporate governance and effective internal controls to prevent any possible banking crises. To this end, the financial authority said it will overhaul its bank management evaluation system, a core of the FSS' supervisory role, while planning to hold meetings with bank boards on a regular basis.“The FSS will strengthen both its off-site and on-site inspections on local banks,” FSS Senior Deputy Governor Lee Joon-soo said during a press conference, Tuesday. “Off-site inspections include evaluating a bank's board governance by analyzing various reports, documents and minutes of board meetings. On-site inspections, meanwhile, assess a bank's overall management through regular inspections or ones to a

Apr 4, 2023By Anna J. Park
Financial watchdog strengthens supervision on banks' governance, internal controls
Economy

KOSPI-listed companies to start publishing disclosures in English next year

gettyimagesbankObligation of English disclosures to extend to broader scope in 2026 By Anna J. ParkNext year, companies listed on the country's main benchmark KOSPI market will be required to publish disclosures in English within three days after the same disclosure information is submitted in Korean to the Korea Exchange (KRX), the bourse market operator. This is according to the revision of the KRX's disclosure regulations completed at the end of March. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the KRX have been working together since January to revise the disclosure regulation in order to broaden the local capital market's accessibility to foreign investors.According to the timeline set by the top financial regulator, the obligation of publishing company disclosures in English will be imposed on large-cap KOSPI-listed companies starting next year. Companies listed on the KOSPI market that hold over 10 trillion won ($7.68 billion) worth of assets will be required to publish disclosures in English on settlements of accounting or major corporate decisions that could affect stock ma

Apr 2, 2023By Anna J. Park
KOSPI-listed companies to start publishing disclosures in English next year
Banking & Finance

Regulators urge financial groups to minimize interest rate hikes

Financial authorities and financial group leaders held a meeting at the Korea Press Center in central Seoul, Friday. From left, KB Financial Group Vice Chairman Yang Jong-hee, Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, NongHyup Financial Group Chairman Lee Suk-joon, Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Kim Joo-hyun, Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Bok-hyun, Woori Financial Group Chairman Yim Jong-ryong, Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Jin Ok-dong and Korea Federation of Banks Chairman Kim Kwang-soo. YonhapFSC chief stresses internal control and risk management By Anna J. ParkFinancial authorities have called on major financial group leaders to shield borrowers from the impact of interest rate hikes, urging the companies themselves to absorb the rising costs from global interest rate increases as much as possible. The message came during a meeting between the financial authorities ― top financial regulator Financial Services Commission (FSC) and financial watchdog Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) ― and chiefs of the country's five major financial groups

Mar 31, 2023By Anna J. Park
Regulators urge financial groups to minimize interest rate hikes
Banking & Finance

4 candidates nominated for Woori Bank CEO post

Woori Financial Group Chairman Yim Jong-ryong speaks during an opening ceremony of a branch intended to serve senior citizens in Seoul, Thursday. YonhapBy Anna J. ParkAfter Woori Financial Group swore in Yim Jong-ryong as its new chairman last week, attention is now focused on who will lead Woori Bank. The leading post at the banking subsidiary of Woori Financial Group has been empty for nearly a month, following the sudden resignation of former Woori Bank CEO Lee Won-duk early this month. The financial group's executive recommendation committee has recently confirmed a list of four nominee candidates for the CEO post of the bank ― corporate and investment banking division managing director Kang Shin-kook, local business division managing director Lee Seok-tae, Woori Card CEO Park Wan-sik and Woori Financial Capital CEO Cho Byung-kyu. All born between 1964 and 1965, the four candidates started their careers at either the Commercial Bank of Korea or Hanil Bank, both of which are former institutions of the current Woori Bank. Since the two banks merged in 1998, Woori Bank has been led

Mar 30, 2023By Anna J. Park
4 candidates nominated for Woori Bank CEO post
Economy

M&A consulting becomes largest source of profit in local financial advisory market

gettyimagesbankM&A advisory grows by 260% in six years, while DCM shrinks by 15%By Anna J. ParkThe size of the M&A advisory market has been growing fast in Korea during the past few years, taking up the largest proportion of annual financial consulting services in the country. The weight of corporate bond offerings, which used to be a key source of profit for the local investment banking (IB) sector until just a few years ago, has been visibly decreasing.According to data by financial information platform Dealogic, M&A advisory services accounted for about 40 percent, or 317.3 billion won ($243 million), of the entire size of last year's financial advisory market in Korea, which stood at around 797.5 billion won. In last year's figures, advisory services for the equity capital market (ECM) accounted for 29 percent, or 228.5 billion won, while the debt capital market (DCM) advisory took up 25 percent. The ECM division covers a range of corporate finance activities, including IPOs, private equity placements, as well as the issuance of convertible or exchangeable bonds (CB o

Mar 30, 2023By Anna J. Park
M&A consulting becomes largest source of profit in local financial advisory market
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