The Korea Times

Hana CEO taken on hero-to-zero ride

Lone Star’s whims, regulatory rigidity block Kim’s deal of lifetime By Oh Young-jin Hana Financial CEO Kim Seung-yu faces the biggest crisis in his 40-year-old banking career over dimmer prospects of taking over the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB). Kim’s current plight strikes a contrast with six months ago, when he made a secret trip to London to cut a deal for a controlling stake in KEB from Lone Star Chairman John Grayken. The 68-year-old veteran banker, who played a key role in acquiring three banks, received kudos for his sharp judgment that would steer the trophy bank his way. “Kim knows how to play the games,” a senior banker complimented Kim for dropping his bid for Woori Financial at that time and going after KEB in a surprise move. Back then, Kim met Woori Financial Chairman Lee Pal-sung on nearly a dozen occasions, giving birth to speculation that a marriage was close at hand. Nowadays, there are few who would praise Kim for his business acumen. Rather, Kim is either depicted as a reckless banker who has fallen for a wrong advisor or a man of misfortune. “I

Jun 20, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

Hills infectious optimism

By Oh Young-jin It didn’t take long to find out what separates Richard Hill from the crowd as CEO of SC First Bank. It’s not the choice of Peter Sands, his boss and leader of SC Group, a global British financial group, as his role model. Nor is it his ability to crunch numbers. The strongest impression left after speaking with him for over an hour was his optimism and it appears very infectious. The interview started with the usual formalities skipped. Hill took to heart the suggestion of conducting the interview in Korean and tried enthusiastically. Of course, he used an intricate Korean etiquette of modesty by saying that his skills weren’t good enough but still spoke pleasantries in Korean, word by word. His effort to learn Korean through lessons on almost a daily basis has been well received by the media, being taken as his sign of commitment to Korea and reflecting his bank’s motto, “Here For Good.” Actually hearing him speak Korean gave a sense of reality to these assumptions. But don’t confuse his enthusiasm with a lack of sophistication. While ex

Jun 9, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

What are secrets of Lees success?

Big networking, personal charm are seen to be first and foremost in his arsenal By Oh Young-jin Reputation precedes Woori Bank CEO Lee Soon-woo. The 61-year-old lifetime banker, who was promoted to his current position in March, is said to be so strong in interpersonal relationships that he is intimate enough with a half of Seoul citizens to regard them on a first-name basis. Of course, it is an exaggeration but still shows how extensive his human network is. Then, those who are close to him would know Lee as one who has dinner several times almost every evening. Obviously, Lee doesn’t eat much each time because he is as slim as an arrow with few extra pounds. Lee is everywhere, attending one dinner meeting after another and paying visits to funerals of family members of his employees. On a more public note, Lee is known to be a smooth speaker who can make a speech without preparations for any given occasion. These factors alone could have made Lee a strong candidate for the coveted job but did they alone account for his rise to the top? Recently,

Jun 6, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

KT&G refuses to rule out price hike

KT&G is finding itself in a dilemma of sorts in whether to follow foreign brands and raise the price of a pack of cigarettes by 200 won. Right now, it is enjoying what is widely believed to be a temporary boost in its cigarette sales and rises in stock price, a gain it has earned thanks to the preemptive price hike but it is not sure how the market will react further down the road. “We don’t have plans to raise the price for now,” a KT&G official said. “But I want to emphasize ‘for now.’” Two factors are worrying the Korean cigarette maker. First, the rise in stock price is very much attributable to the fact that it is reserving the right to raise prices although it may have to make a judgment call soon. The second is a built-in concern among KT&G officials that somehow their products are seen to be inferior in quality to foreign brands, with the lower prices of their products strengthening such a stereotypical thinking. “We are engaged in serious soul-searching over which would be better for us ― quantity sale at a lower price or a boost in our product image by seeking

May 27, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

Bogey player’s albatross shot

Fila CEO buying global golf product makers Titleist, FootJoy By Oh Young-jin What does Gene Yoon, chairman and CEO of sportswear maker, Fila have in mind? One thing that is certain is that Yoon, an amateur golfer with a handicap of 18 for an 18-hole round, has as good as hit an albatross by snaring one of the biggest deals in the global golf industry. It is hard to catch a glimpse into the business mind of one of the most celebrated self-made businessmen in Korea but, by some indications, he has set his mind on making his sportswear making firm into a golf conglomerate such as Tailor-Made or Nike Golf. Last week, Yoon made it into headlines, as he, with the help of Mirae Asset, took over Acushnet, the U.S. golf firm that has Titelist golf ball maker and FootJoy golf shoemaker, at a cost of $1.2 billion. “I want to create big synergy between Fila, and Titelist and FootJoy,” Yoon told The Korea Times during a phone interview Sunday. “I believe that these firms, the world leading firms in their given areas of business, will encourage the development of the golf-re

May 22, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Economy

Why Euh takes yips in stride

By Oh Young-jin Euh Yoon-dae, the 66-year-old chairman of KB Financial, likes sports in general and golf in particular. As an avid sportsman, knowing the exact moment to strike a ball with force comes natural for Euh. His interest in golf began while studying for his Ph.D. in business management at the University of Michigan. He had “just enough time” to fall in love with the game of golf. There are three reasons to say, “just enough time.” First, Michigan is a “snow state” with a climate that allows less than a half year of playing golf. Second, Euh’s leisure was compressed into a short period wedged in the middle of his thesis-writing. He took up golf to briefly get away from his studies and get a breath of fresh air. Although an intense love of any kind often doesn’t last long, his love for golf has stuck with him. He appreciates the beauty of the game, which boils down to competition ― ultimately competition with yourself ― bringing the best and worst out of you for view in plain sight. When Tiger Woods in his prime said, “No matter how good you are, y

May 8, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

Loyalty, trust pillars for Pernod Ricard

By Oh Young-jin If you were to run into Pierre Pringuet on the street without knowing who he is, chances are that you would think the 61-year-old Frenchman is either a musician or a scientist. His piercing eyes, softened by rimless glasses, would lend further credence to musical talent or laboratory skills. In other words, give him a conductor’s baton and place him in front of an orchestra, and he would fit in nicely. On the other hand, if he donned a white lab coat, he would not look out of place surrounded by beakers and Petri dishes. A handshake and a brief exchange of pleasantries, however, would dispute any misplaced conventional thoughts that the French are not globalists. I want to put emphasis on the word,” misplaced,” because we know of a lot of Frenchmen who trotted the globe, Napoleon being one among a multitude. Pringuet may be one of the latest additions to show the contrary is closer to the truth. He would be willing to accept an Anglicized (for that matter, Koreanized) pronunciation of his name without an attempt to correct it. A popular stereotype is a

Apr 29, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

Kumho, Dongbu, Tongyang bosses see stakes collateralized

In strange arrangement, creditors allow them to stay in control of conglomerates By Oh Young-jin Chairmen of some sizable conglomerates maintain their management control, even after most of their shareholdings were given to creditor banks as collateral. They include Kumho Asiana Chairman Park Sam-koo; Dongbu Group Chairman Kim Jun-ki and Tongyang Group Chairman Hyun Jae-hyun. According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and chaebul.com, the portal watchdog for chaebol affairs, the collateralized portion of the top 30 conglomerate leaders’ shares went up 1.8 percentage points to 16.8 percent. But some of those at the bottom of the ladder were significantly higher in terms of collateralization than those above them. Kumbo’s Park put up about 99 percent of his shareholdings in the group’s affiliates in 2009 when Kumho Industries and Kumho Tire went under creditor-initiated debt restructuring and Asiana Airlines and Kumho Pharmaceuticals were also given a chance to restructure. Kumbo was once among Korea’s top 10 conglomerates but its Chairman Park was force

Apr 24, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

Goldman dumps large chunk of Hana shares

The National Pension Service (NPS) has replaced Goldman Sachs as the largest single shareholder of Hana Financial Group. According to market sources, the change of status came as the U.S.-based investor sold about 7.5 million Hana shares or about 3.1 percent of the total in a bloc sale before the opening of the market to an unidentified number of long-term overseas funds. This brought down Goldman’s portion to 4.45 percent. Goldman has held its Hana stake through its subsidiary, GS Dejakoo. The sale price was around 43,000 won per share or about 6.5 percent in discount from its Wednesday closing price. The discount was bigger than expected triggering speculation that Goldman is divesting itself of Hana shares because of an increased uncertainty about regulators’ approval of Hana’s purchase of a controlling stake in the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), held by Lone Star. Now NPS, the second largest with a stake between 7 and 8 percent of Hana, has emerged as the leading shareholder. Hana Chairman was quoted by Yonhap as saying, “I have been notified in advance of Goldman’s pl

Apr 21, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Companies

When US envoy plugs Volt, she also does it for Korea

By Oh Young-jin When U.S. Ambassador to Korea Kathleen Stephens drove a Volt, a GM-made electric car, as part of her embassy’s “Green” campaign, also aimed at promoting her country’s hardware, Wednesday, she also promoted products made in Korea. More specifically, about one quarter of the price of the car, set at about $40,000, is accounted for by a rechargeable battery, made and supplied by LG Chem. In other words, the Volt lives up to the truest of the phrase ― Korean-American cooperation as said in an embassy invitation to reporters for Stephens’ Volt ride for a short distance from her residence to the embassy in downtown Seoul. The release dubbed car, “the one-of-a-kind Chevy Volt.” According to an account by a reporter who was on hand, it was a flawless ride, with the ambassador in the driver’s seat for a change. Stephens appeared to be in a good mood judging from a photo taken of her at the start of her test run. There are conflicting accounts about the popularity of the Volt in the United States but one thing experts in the industry agree on is the car can

Apr 20, 2011By Oh Young-jin

Oh Young-jin

Read more

Hana CEO taken on hero-to-zero ride

Hills infectious optimism

What are secrets of Lees success?

KT&G refuses to rule out price hike

Bogey player’s albatross shot

Why Euh takes yips in stride

Loyalty, trust pillars for Pernod Ricard

Kumho, Dongbu, Tongyang bosses see stakes collateralized

Goldman dumps large chunk of Hana shares

When US envoy plugs Volt, she also does it for Korea

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