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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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Economy

FSS chief to join overseas investor relations event in London to promote 'K-Finance'

Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Bok-hyun, center, speaks during an investor relations event in Singapore in May. KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo, left, and Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, right, also attended the event in May. Courtesy of FSSBy Anna J. ParkFinancial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Bok-hyun is scheduled to join a financial firms' investor relations event in London in September, aiming to facilitate the promotion of the local financial industry. It will be Lee's second participation in the financial firms' overseas investor relations event since he took part in it in Singapore in May. Titled “K-Finance in London in 2023,” the event is slated to take place on Sept. 13, targeting both inbound and outbound financial investment, which is associated with the Korean market. On Friday the FSS said the state-run financial watchdog agency will co-host the event.“The IR (investor relations) event in London is jointly hosted by the FSS, financial companies, as well as Seoul and Busan municipalities, planning to pro

Aug 4, 2023By Anna J. Park
FSS chief to join overseas investor relations event in London to promote 'K-Finance'
Economy

Retail investors flock to superconductor stocks

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkRetail investors' enthusiasm is moving towards superconductors, resulting in stock price rallies in companies perceived as related to the technology. The trend follows the local stock markets' recent feverish advance toward secondary battery-themed stocks. Superconductors, materials with zero electrical resistance or magnetic flux fields, have now become the central topic among Koreans, as a team of Korean physicists affiliated with several institutions in the country claimed to have found LK-99, a potential room-temperature superconducting material, for the first time in the world. With the news raising the public's anticipation over industrial innovation and commercialization of the technology, some thematic stocks related to the industry soared, drawing in more investors. According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), the bourse market operator, SuNam, a local firm manufacturing energy-efficient second-generation superconducting wires and high-field superconducting magnets, posted a six-day consecutive winning streak until Thursday. During the last three sess

Aug 4, 2023By Anna J. Park
Retail investors flock to superconductor stocks
  • New superconductor developed by Korean scientists draws global attention
Economy

Why is embezzlement continuing at banks?

BNK Kyongnam Bank headquarters in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province / Courtesy of BNK Kyongnam BankEmbezzlement by bank employees totals 200 bil. won since 2017By Anna J. Park Questions have arisen over the high number of embezzlement cases involving bank employees in the country. Market watchers point out that binding rules and responsibilities on banks' internal control initiatives need to be strengthened, as the financial authorities' current non-binding guidelines fall short of changing banks' practices. According to data released by independent lawmaker Rep. Yang Jung-suk, the accumulated amount of misappropriated money by bank employees during the first seven months of this year alone reaches about 60 billion ($46 million). It is the second-highest annual amount following the record set last year when the total annual embezzlement amounted to 101 billion won. The majority of the amount during the past two years was attributed to a couple of cases ― an embezzler in BNK Kyongnam Bank who was recently confirmed to have misappropriated more than 56 billion won, and a Woori Bank e

Aug 3, 2023By Anna J. Park
Why is embezzlement continuing at banks?
Economy

INTERVIEW Gov't move to break banking oligopoly not expected to cause major shifts

Kim Dae-hyun, S&P Global Ratings' director of the Financial Services Ratings group in Asia Pacific, poses in front of the firm's office in Seoul during a recent interview with The Korea Times. Korea Times photo by Anna J. ParkNew entrants into mature banking sector need time to grow By Anna J. ParkDespite financial authorities' recent decision to break the banking industry's de facto oligopoly and spur competition, the banking sector is not likely to see a major shift in its competitive landscape, S&P Global Ratings' senior credit analyst estimates. "It is expected that it would take a long time for a new entrant to grow its presence significantly in Korea's mature banking market," Kim Dae-hyun, a director in S&P Global's Financial Services Ratings group in Asia-Pacific, said during a recent one-on-one interview with The Korea Times at his office in Seoul. "The market shares of Korean banks will remain broadly stable at least in the coming few years," he added.Early this month, the Financial Services Commission (FSC), the country's top financial regulator, announced a ser

Aug 3, 2023By Anna J. Park
[INTERVIEW] Gov't move to break banking oligopoly not expected to cause major shifts
Banking & Finance

BNK Kyongnam Bank employee caught embezzling $43 million

BNK Kyongnam Bank headquarters in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province / Courtesy of BNK Kyongnam BankBy Anna J. ParkThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has confirmed an allegation of embezzlement amounting to 56.2 billion won ($43 million) by an employee in the project finance loan department at BNK Kyongnam Bank.The state-run financial watchdog announced Wednesday that it initiated an emergency on-site inspection on July 21, immediately after receiving a report of the allegation, and verified the embezzlement earlier this week. According to the FSS, it received the report from the BNK Kyongnam Bank of the embezzlement allegation against the employee, estimated initially to amount to 7.79 billion won on July 21, once the bank realized the misappropriation by the employee through its internal inspection earlier in the month. The FSS' on-site inspection confirmed a total of 56.2 billion won had been embezzled, as of Tuesday. The bank submitted an embezzlement claim against the employee to the prosecution. “The FSS will continue inspections on the bank as speedily as possible,

Aug 2, 2023By Anna J. Park
BNK Kyongnam Bank employee caught embezzling $43 million
Banking & Finance

KakaoBank posts all-time-high profits for H1

KakaoBank logo / Courtesy of KakaoBankRecord-high earnings ascribed to stable risk management and increase in customersBy Anna J. ParkKakaoBank has logged a record-high operating profit and net profit for the first half of this year, fueled by solid customer growth and sophisticated risk management to control delinquency rates.According to the internet-only bank's earnings call on Wednesday, KakaoBank posted an operating profit of 248 billion won ($191 million) during the first half, a 52 percent increase from the same period last year. The bank recorded a net profit of 183.8 billion won, a 48.5 percent rise year-on-year. “Despite the fall in earnings from net interest margin (NIM) and conservative reserve requirement, KakaoBank has posted its all-time-high earnings ever for the first half of this year,” the bank announced, Wednesday. “The growth is attributed to an expansion in providing medium and low credit loans as well as offering competitive interest rates for customers,” the digital bank said. As to the latest quarterly performance, the bank posted an o

Aug 2, 2023By Anna J. Park
KakaoBank posts all-time-high profits for H1
Economy

Legal experts skeptical of benefits from protracted Lone Star-Korean gov't dispute

Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon, right, attends a cabinet meeting held at the presidential office in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap No real benefits expected from seeking annulmentBy Anna J. ParkThe Korean government plans to seek an annulment proceeding of an international tribunal arbitration ruling that ordered the country to pay $216.5 million plus interest in damage compensation to Lone Star. The move comes in response to the U.S.-based private equity fund's annulment application submitted at the end of last month, asking the arbitration tribunal to cancel the ruling by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) last August. “The Korean government was notified by the secretariat of the ICSID on July 29 that Lone Star submitted the annulment application of the arbitration ruling. The government is thoroughly reviewing the annulment application submitted by Lone Star, and plans to file an annulment (of our own) within the deadline that falls on

Aug 1, 2023By Anna J. Park
Legal experts skeptical of benefits from protracted Lone Star-Korean gov't dispute
Banking & Finance

Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch urged to strengthen operations procedure

The headquarters of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) in Seoul / YonhapBy Anna J. ParkThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has called on the Seoul branches of Morgan Stanley & Co. International and Merrill Lynch International to strengthen operations management.According to the FSS on Monday, the state-run financial watchdog agency notified the two firms of management precautions earlier this month, pointing out the need for strengthened management control over the reporting of transaction orders made at independent trading units of their overseas subsidiaries.The FSS' public disclosure information on management cautions stated that both firms were pointed out as having errors in the reporting of transaction orders and executions by independent trading units of overseas subsidiaries under the control of the Seoul branches. The financial authorities' disclosure reports also show the two firms were found to have deficiencies in the systematic management of daily net assets and margin balance forms as well as inadequate management of margin trading records. Regarding such p

Jul 31, 2023By Anna J. Park
Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch urged to strengthen operations procedure
Economy

18 financial firms sanctioned for short-selling violations

gettyimagesbankFSS vows to strengthen inspections on illicit short-selling practicesBy Anna J. ParkFinancial authorities caught 18 financial companies, both local and foreign, for breaking short-selling rules and imposed 1 billion won ($782,000) in fines or penalties.The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) sanctioned 18 companies as well as individuals for violating short-selling restrictions or rules during its regular meeting held last Friday, according to the official meeting records.Short-selling refers to a trading technique in which stocks that are expected to decline in value are borrowed and sold, and then repurchased at a lower price to repay the borrowed stocks, thereby making a profit. As the technique involves risks of incurring potential losses, short-sellers have taken various moves to seek undeserved gains by breaking rules on such practices when the stock price continues to rise. Charged with breaking short-selling restrictions, QUANTin Asset Management was imposed a fine of 350 million won, while PFM Asset Management was

Jul 30, 2023By Anna J. Park
18 financial firms sanctioned for short-selling violations
Economy

Korea's electronic disclosure system offers more information in English for foreign investors

The headquarters of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) in Seoul / NewsisBy Anna J. ParkKorea's electronic disclosure system, or DART ― short for Data Analysis, Retrieval and Transfer System ― has expanded its English services for foreign investors, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) announced Sunday. The move is part of the local financial authorities' policy direction set earlier this year to widen foreign investors' accessibility to the Korean capital market by gradually expanding disclosure information available in English.From Monday, foreign investors without Korean language proficiency can log into the DART website and check corporations' latest disclosure status in English, including companies' disclosure report titles as well as attached files of reports. By identifying disclosure report titles in English, investors can then access files that they want and read them in English by using a built-in translating function on the DART system.Previously, only disclosure reports voluntarily written in English by listed companies either at the KOSPI or Kosdaq markets and sub

Jul 30, 2023By Anna J. Park
Korea's electronic disclosure system offers more information in English for foreign investors
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