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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

Apple Pay anticipated to launch in Korea in December

Apple Pay image / Korea Times fileBy Anna J. ParkDespite earlier market expectations that Apple Pay would be launched in Korea from Nov. 30, it is estimated that the starting date of the payment service in the country will be delayed to sometime around December.Hyundai Card, which is a key partner in bringing Apple Pay to be available in Korea, remained tight-lipped about the matter, in a phone conversation with The Korea Times on Wednesday. “As of now, we cannot confirm any matters regarding Apple Pay,” an official from Hyundai Card told The Korea Times. Market watchers say the deviation from the slated launch schedule is due in part to the delayed deliberation by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on the contractual terms and conditions of Apple Pay. Once the financial watchdog's examination is over and its key clauses are done, the payment service is likely to be available in the country. That's why it is expected that the service would be able to be launched as early as sometime around December. While both Hyundai Card and Apple have been declining to give out an

Nov 30, 2022By Anna J. Park
Apple Pay anticipated to launch in Korea in December
Economy

Chicken, beer stock prices plunge after Korea loses to Ghana

Korean fans cheer for the Korean national soccer squad for a match with Ghana during the ongoing FIFA World Cup at the Education City Stadium in Al-Rayyan, Qatar, Monday. YonhapBy Anna J. ParkFollowing a disappointing defeat of the Korean national soccer squad in a match with Ghana on Monday, the prices of chicken and alcohol stocks plunged during Tuesday's trading session, due in part to concerns that the public's enthusiasm in supporting Team Korea in the FIFA World Cup would run out of steam.Jeju Beer fell by 9.92 percent, finishing at 1,725 won ($1.30) at Tuesday's close. At the start of the session, the price of the stock fell to as low as 1,690 won, which is more than a 10 percent fall from the previous session. Tuesday's plunge in the beer stock price was a contrast from its earlier upward movement posted since late October this year. The stock price increased over 60 percent in a month from late October to late November, reflecting expectations of increased consumption of beer during the World Cup season. The stock particularly hiked by 19 percent on a single trading session

Nov 29, 2022By Anna J. Park
Chicken, beer stock prices plunge after Korea loses to Ghana
  • After loss to Ghana, Korea can still reach knockouts with win, help from others
Banking & Finance

Shinhan chooses 3 candidates for next chairman

Shinhan Financial Group headquarters in central Seoul / NewsisBy Anna J. ParkShinhan Financial Group said Tuesday that it has confirmed three candidates for its next chairman. The candidates are current Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung, Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dong and Shinhan Card CEO Lim Young-jin. A board committee tasked with recommending group chairman candidates announced that it chose the three contenders following in-depth discussions held in three official meetings. The group said the candidate selection was based on thorough deliberations on a wide range of candidates, from both inside and outside of the group. Two other candidates are said to have made the shortlist, but they weren't included in the final candidate list. “Putting the utmost priority in the group's stable management structure, the recommendation committee has proceeded with the process in a fair and transparent manner, while securing the full independence of the committee,” a source familiar with the board said. The next candidate recommendation meeting is slated to be held on De

Nov 29, 2022By Anna J. Park
Shinhan chooses 3 candidates for next chairman
Economy

Foreign investors' registration obligation to be abolished

Kim So-young, vice chair of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), speaks during a seminar on removing the so-called Korea discount held at the Korea Exchange (KRX) in Yeouido, Seoul, Monday. YonhapBy Anna J. ParkKorea's financial authorities plan to remove a decades-long obligation imposed on foreign investors to register their identities prior to investing in Korean stocks.The move is part of the Korean government's efforts to ease financial regulations on global investors, as the registration requirement for foreign investors has been pinpointed as one of the key stumbling blocks contributing to the so-called Korea discount, referring to the undervaluation of Korean stocks.“Requiring an identity registration on the part of foreign investors prior to their investments in local stocks is rarely found among developed countries. Some global investors even doubt whether their trade records are being supervised in real time through the ID process. The Korean government will abolish the identification registration requirement for foreign investors,” Kim So-young, vice chair

Nov 28, 2022By Anna J. Park
Foreign investors' registration obligation to be abolished
Banking & Finance

Foreign PEs covet Mom's Touch

A Mom's Touch branch in Seoul / NewsisBy Anna J. Park Various global private equity firms have joined the bidding war to acquire Mom's Touch, a Korea-headquartered chicken burger chain, due in part to their favorable positions created by the strong U.S. dollar. New potential buyers could emerge any time, as the sales process is currently being conducted on a rolling basis, meaning applications for acquisitions will be reviewed as they come in, rather than waiting for a certain date to judge them all at once. According to the investment banking industry, Monday, U.S.-based Goldman Sachs PIA and Asia-focused PAG have submitted their bids for the franchise business, currently owned by KL & Partners, a Korea-headquartered private equity firm.Goldman Sachs' PIA is the financial giant's private equity unit that has made successful investments in a few Korean unicorn companies, including Baemin, a food delivery application, and Zigbang, a real estate information platform.PAG's bid for Mom's Touch is its first salient acquisition attempt in the domestic M&A market since it sold Young

Nov 28, 2022By Anna J. Park
Foreign PEs covet Mom's Touch
Cryptocurrency

Korea's first digital asset bill expected to be passed as early as Dec.

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkThe parliament is set to deliberate on a bill that stipulates cryptocurrency exchanges' obligations for investor protection as early as later this month, as rival parties share a common understanding about a need to legalize the country's growing digital asset markets. According to the parliament and coin industry insiders, the National Policy Committee ― a sub-committee of the National Assembly that supervises the financial sectors and financial policies ― is expected to hold its committee meeting on reviewing bills on Nov. 29, although the date is not completely fixed as of now. If the review committee meeting is held on Tuesday as expected, a bill on digital assets is highly likely to be reviewed at the meeting.Once the actual review of the bill is implemented by the parliamentary committee, it is forecast that the bill would be able to pass the legislative procedures quickly, as rival parties, as well as the government, do not seem to have major differences on the bill. Also, both the parliament and the government are under pressure to strengthen cry

Nov 27, 2022By Anna J. Park
Korea's first digital asset bill expected to be passed as early as Dec.
Banking & Finance

Financial authorities examine Wemix delisting

Wemade headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province / YonhapBy Anna J. ParkAmid growing controversies, financial authorities have decided to closely look into the case of a scheduled delisting of Wemix, a key cryptocurrency project by game company Wemade, to see whether the coin exchanges' listing and delisting criteria need to be more transparent or improved.According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on Sunday, it has begun monitoring the situation, as it examines local cryptocurrency exchanges' internal rules about stipulating digital assets' delisting process. The examination, however, will not exert any binding influence on the Wemix delisting case, as the FSS does not have any legal grounds to supervise the digital asset markets, due to a lack of relevant laws regulating local cryptocurrency assets. The FSS said the monitoring aims to figure out any institutional loophole in the digital asset markets, which would later help the financial authorities' possible future regulation of the cryptocurrency asset markets.“The FSS cannot intervene in this particular delisti

Nov 27, 2022By Anna J. Park
Financial authorities examine Wemix delisting
Banking & Finance

Wemade stocks plunge to daily bottom on delisting of Wemix coin

Wemade CEO Jang Hyun-kook, center, arrives at Wemade headquarters in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Friday morning. Yonhap Wemade to file for court injunction to rectify the issueBy Anna J. ParkIt's been a real Black Friday for the stocks of gaming giant Wemade. With its Wemix cryptocurrency to be delisted from major coin exchanges, the stock prices of Wemade and its two subsidiaries, Wemade Max and Wemade Play, all listed on the tech-heavy Kosdaq market, plunged to rock bottom during Friday's session.The stock price of Wemade finished at 39,400 won ($29.73), a 29.89 percent decrease, while Wemade Max fell to 13,000 won, a 29.92 percent fall, and Wemade Play nosedived to 15,100 won, a 29.93 percent fall. Local stock markets have an upper and lower 30 percent limit rule, which corrals listed stocks' daily price changes within 30 percent. The three gaming stocks all nosedived to the floor during Friday's session, as major local coin exchanges announced Thursday their de

Nov 25, 2022By Anna J. Park
Wemade stocks plunge to daily bottom on delisting of Wemix coin
Banking & Finance

Mid-sized brokerage firms undergo restructuring to secure liquidity

The headquarters of Daol Investment & Securities on Yeouido in Seoul / Courtesy of Daol InvestmentBy Anna J. ParkDaol Investment & Securities is receiving applications from its full-time employees for voluntary retirement until next Monday. It is the first time in nearly 10 years that the brokerage firm has conducted a voluntary resignation program since 2013. Those who with over five years of experience will be granted about 13 to 18 months' worth of salary, once their resignations commence ― by the end of this year.The move is seen as the firm's attempt to carry out restructuring to cut costs so as to secure liquidity. Daol Investment, in particular, is known to have a considerable amount of risk exposure to real estate project financing compared to its capital size. Besides the voluntary retirement program, key executives of the firm also tendered their resignations earlier this month. On a similar note to mitigate any liquidity crisis, the company has also recently begun the process of selling its Thai affiliate, Daol Thailand PCL, for about 100 billion won ($75 million),

Nov 25, 2022By Anna J. Park
Mid-sized brokerage firms undergo restructuring to secure liquidity
Economy

Digital capabilities to determine competitive edge for local banks: Deloitte report

gettyimagesbankKakaoBank and Toss Bank lead local digital banking practices By Anna J. Park Korea's banking sector has been quickly innovating with expanded roles taken by digital banking since the COVID-19 outbreak. This deepened reliance on digital banking is not confined to Korea. “Digital maturity,” or an organization's ability to respond and adapt to technological trends, has been surveyed to have risen across the entire banking sector globally over the past two years. According to a Korean version report of Deloitte's “Digital Banking Maturity 2022,” which surveyed 304 banks from 41 countries of five continents, about 70 percent of researched global banks now offer a remote account opening option, which is a 15-percentage-point increase from the same survey in 2020. The report, dedicated to the theme of digital banking maturity, is in its fifth edition, since its first publication in 2016. It is the biggest global digital banking study, providing an in-depth analysis of digital retail banking patterns.While most surveyed banks turned out to have extended

Nov 24, 2022By Anna J. Park
Digital capabilities to determine competitive edge for local banks: Deloitte report
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