The Korea Times

Semiconductor tax windfall revives debate over Korea's education funding formula

Korea earmarks 20.79 percent of each year's domestic tax revenue to fund elementary, middle and high schools across the country under a decades-old formula designed to insulate education spending from economic and political fluctuations. This year, however, an unprecedented semiconductor boom is set to swell corporate tax receipts, automatically channeling a substantial share of the windfall into education. Yet the allocation has already more than doubled over the past decade — rising from 39 trillion won ($25.9 billion) in 2015 to a projected record high of over 80 trillion won this year — even as the school-age population shrank from 6.4 million to 4.92 million. That growing disconnect has fueled calls from fiscal authorities to overhaul the current formula. At a public forum co-hosted by the Ministry of Planning and Budget and the Ministry of Education on Wednesday, government officials and experts debated whether the half-century-old system still makes sense in today's demographic and fiscal realities. Budget Minister Park Hong-keun said the current funding system no longer reflec

Jul 8, 2026By Park Han-sol

Semiconductor tax windfall revives debate over Korea's education funding formula

Banking & Finance

Korea Investment Corp. opens Tokyo office to expand Asia-Pacific presence

Korea Investment Corp. (KIC), the country’s sovereign wealth fund, has opened its sixth overseas outpost in Tokyo as it seeks to strengthen its investment presence across the Asia-Pacific region, the company said Tuesday. The move comes as Japan’s economy shows signs of a structural recovery after years of sluggish growth and deflation, with wages, prices and corporate earnings all on the rise. The improving outlook has made the country increasingly attractive to global investors. The Tokyo office will oversee investments across both traditional asset classes, including equities and fixed income, and alternatives such as private equity and real estate. KIC said a local presence will allow it to build stronger relationships in a market where trust and long-standing networks are critical to sourcing investment opportunities. It will also focus on uncovering opportunities available only on the ground while serving as a hub for information sharing and cooperation with Korean financial institutions operating in Japan. “The Tokyo office will play a pivotal role as a strategic hub, enabli

Jul 7, 2026By Park Han-sol

Korea Investment Corp. opens Tokyo office to expand Asia-Pacific presence

Economy

HD Hyundai, SK, CJ, Lotte face IPO dilemma under Korea's new subsidiary listing rules

The government’s new guidelines, which effectively bar the separate listing of subsidiaries spun off from listed parent companies that can erode shareholder value, have cast uncertainty over the initial public offering (IPO) plans of several high-profile Korean firms, according to industry experts, Tuesday. Among those forced to rethink their listing strategies are HD Hyundai Robotics, CJ Olive Young, Lotte Biologics and SK ecoplant, all of which have been regarded as strong IPO candidates. At the heart of the new regulations, unveiled Monday by the Financial Services Commission and the Korea Exchange, is a requirement that listed companies secure shareholder approval before separately listing subsidiaries created by spinning off part of their business while retaining control. The change puts minority shareholder protection at the center of the process. Boards will also be expected to present concrete measures to preserve shareholder value, such as raising cash dividends, canceling treasury shares or strengthening the parent company’s earnings power through new investments. HD Hyunda

Jul 7, 2026By Park Han-sol

HD Hyundai, SK, CJ, Lotte face IPO dilemma under Korea's new subsidiary listing rules

Banking & Finance

Hana Bank begins round-the-clock FX trading services

Hana Bank began providing round-the-clock trading services, Monday, as Korea’s won-dollar foreign exchange market entered the first full day of its 24-hour operation. The change abolishes the previous trading window of 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. the following day, allowing global investors and other market participants to trade the won against the U.S. dollar at Seoul market rates regardless of the time of day. To mark the launch, Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol visited Hana Bank’s dealing room in Seoul, where he observed the extended trading session alongside Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo and Hana Bank CEO Lee Ho-sung. The delegation also held a video call with the bank’s London branch, a registered foreign institution participating in Korea’s onshore FX market, to monitor market activity during European trading hours. Ahead of the transition, Hana Bank said it had strengthened its foreign exchange operations by opening Hana Infinity Seoul, the country’s largest FX dealing room, in 2024 and establishing a 24-hour operating system in step with the phased expansion of trading

Jul 6, 2026By Park Han-sol

Hana Bank begins round-the-clock FX trading services

Policy

Gov't to effectively ban subsidiary listings to protect minority shareholder value

Companies in Korea will, in principle, no longer be allowed to list subsidiaries created by splitting off businesses from already listed parent companies, in accordance with new rules aimed at curbing a longstanding practice that has drawn criticism for diluting shareholder value, government officials said Monday. The restriction applies to subsidiaries formed when a listed company spins off part of its business while retaining ownership. Such listings will be granted only in exceptional cases after passing stricter reviews, with companies required to demonstrate that minority shareholders are adequately protected. The guidelines, unveiled by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Korea Exchange, impose five new obligations on the boards of parent companies seeking dual listings, alongside tougher listing review standards. According to the FSC, the practice has become widespread in Korea despite concerns that it hurts minority shareholders by lowering the value of the parent company’s shares. Investors have long argued that once a valuable business is listed separately, part

Jul 6, 2026By Park Han-sol

Gov't to effectively ban subsidiary listings to protect minority shareholder value

Companies

Homeplus heads toward liquidation as court pulls plug on rehabilitation

Homeplus, Korea’s second-largest hypermarket chain, is heading toward liquidation after a court terminated its rehabilitation proceedings, ruling that the cash-strapped retailer had no viable path to carrying out its turnaround plan, according to industry officials, Friday. The Seoul Bankruptcy Court dismissed Homeplus’ revised restructuring proposal — which called for sweeping cost cuts, including shuttering nearly half of its stores and reducing its workforce — after the company failed to secure the minimum 200 billion won ($130 million) in fresh funding needed to execute the plan. “The minimum funding required to implement the plan has yet to be secured,” the court said. “As the proposal is therefore not feasible, the rehabilitation proceedings will be terminated without further hearings.” Homeplus has 14 days to appeal. If the ruling stands, the company will be dissolved and creditors will be free to pursue legal remedies, such as asset seizures and foreclosure. Within hours of the decision, the troubled retailer again appealed to its largest creditor, Meritz Financia

Jul 3, 2026By Park Han-sol

Homeplus heads toward liquidation as court pulls plug on rehabilitation

Banking & Finance

Toss to face stricter oversight as Korea's first fintech financial conglomerate

Viva Republica, which operates Toss, is poised to become the first fintech company subject to the same regulatory framework as Korea's other large financial conglomerates, marking a major shift in oversight for the fast-growing platform. Originally launched as a mobile money-transfer app, Toss has since rapidly evolved into a financial platform spanning banking, brokerage and insurance. Authorities are expected to formally designate the company as a “financial conglomerate” later this month. Introduced in 2021, the system is designed to strengthen oversight of groups with multiple financial subsidiaries by requiring integrated supervision of intra-group risk and related-party transactions. Seven conglomerates — Samsung, Hanwha, Mirae Asset, Kyobo, Hyundai Motor, DB and Daou Kiwoom — are currently subject to the regulations. To qualify, a group must operate across at least two of three sectors — banking, insurance and financial investment — with the smallest business holding more than 5 trillion won ($3.24 billion) in assets. Toss qualifies through Toss Bank and Toss Securitie

Jul 3, 2026By Park Han-sol

Toss to face stricter oversight as Korea's first fintech financial conglomerate

Banking & Finance

PHOTO Hana Financial Group launches 20th class of SMART student ambassadors

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, second from left, poses with university students selected for the group's 20th class of SMART Ambassadors at a launch ceremony held at the company headquarters in Seoul, Thursday. Since the program started in 2012, a total of 1,060 university students have participated as honorary ambassadors. Courtesy of Hana Financial Group

Jul 3, 2026By Park Han-sol

[PHOTO] Hana Financial Group launches 20th class of SMART student ambassadors

Economy

As 'jeonse' fades, path to homeownership narrows further in Korea

Kang, an office worker in her 20s, currently rents a studio apartment in Seoul on a monthly lease. During her search for a home, she ruled out Korea’s traditional “jeonse” system — the once-dominant rental arrangement where tenants pay a large lump-sum deposit instead of monthly rent — because of a series of high-profile deposit fraud cases that have undermined trust in the market. “There are also far more monthly rental listings these days, so it’s hard to find a decent jeonse property in the first place,” Kang said. The trade-off is that paying monthly rent leaves little room to build savings for a home of her own. “Even neighborhoods that used to be relatively affordable in Seoul have become so expensive that the difference hardly feels meaningful anymore,” she said. “With monthly lease being my only realistic option, it has become even harder to dream of buying a home.” Jung, a 30-year-old finance professional, had hoped to either secure a jeonse home or buy an apartment with her fiancé. Instead, the couple has widened their search to include monthly rentals a

Jul 3, 2026By Park Han-sol

As 'jeonse' fades, path to homeownership narrows further in Korea

Arts & Theater

Berklee music professor breaks silence on suicide loss

In the spring of 2006, Ray Seol was a 31-year-old jazz student in New York, at a time when Asian musicians were still a rarity in the jazz scene. Four years earlier, he had stunned his family in Korea by announcing that he was traveling halfway across the world to pursue a career in music, all because of a chance encounter with guitarist Wes Montgomery’s spellbinding rendition of “Polka Dots and Moonbeams.” “I experience music through images,” Seol recalled. “When I heard this piece, I couldn’t tell where it began or where it ended. It felt completely unbound, like this dazzling image with no sense of logic.” Then, during finals week, an unexpected international phone call came. His mother had taken her own life. “I’m 51 now,” he said quietly, “the same age my mother was when she died.” Seol, now a jazz bassist and professor at Berklee College of Music, spent the next decade carrying a grief that never seemed to loosen its grip. In many ways, it felt like part of him remained imprisoned by the day she died. But like many bereaved ones, his family retreated into sil

Jul 2, 2026By Park Han-sol

Park Han-sol

Read more

Semiconductor tax windfall revives debate over Korea's education funding formula

Korea Investment Corp. opens Tokyo office to expand Asia-Pacific presence

HD Hyundai, SK, CJ, Lotte face IPO dilemma under Korea's new subsidiary listing rules

Hana Bank begins round-the-clock FX trading services

Gov't to effectively ban subsidiary listings to protect minority shareholder value

Homeplus heads toward liquidation as court pulls plug on rehabilitation

Toss to face stricter oversight as Korea's first fintech financial conglomerate

PHOTO Hana Financial Group launches 20th class of SMART student ambassadors

As 'jeonse' fades, path to homeownership narrows further in Korea

Berklee music professor breaks silence on suicide loss

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