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Jun Ji-hye

Korea Times Finance Reporter

Hello, I am Jun Ji-hye, a reporter at The Korea Times. I primarily cover financial authorities and write articles on a wide range of topics related to finance and capital markets. If you have any information to share, feel free to email me at jjh@koreatimes.co.kr, and I will review it carefully. I am committed to always doing my best to communicate with readers through high-quality articles.

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Banking & Finance

KakaoBank's first overseas bet pays off as Superbank soars in Indonesia IPO

Superbank, an Indonesian digital bank in which KakaoBank made its first overseas equity investment, made a successful stock market debut on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, KakaoBank said Thursday. Korea’s largest internet-only bank invested in Superbank in October 2023 as part of a strategic partnership with Grab aimed at expanding its footprint in Southeast Asia. Superbank’s market capitalization was estimated at around 2.4 trillion won ($1.6 billion) on its first day of trading Wednesday, about 2.6 times higher than its valuation of 900 billion won at the time of KakaoBank’s initial investment. Market response in Indonesia was strong, with the offering attracting more than 1 million bids and a subscription ratio of 318 to 1. On its first trading day, Superbank’s shares surged about 25 percent from the initial public offering (IPO) price of 635 rupiahs. KakaoBank’s investment has also generated a substantial valuation gain. After investing a combined 114 billion won in Superbank in 2023 and 2024, the Korean lender now expects the value of its stake to reach about 204.4 billion w

Dec 18, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
KakaoBank's first overseas bet pays off as Superbank soars in Indonesia IPO
Companies

Korea Zinc's US smelter project faces possible delay amid antitrust hurdles

Korea Zinc’s attempt to establish a joint venture with U.S. partners and proceed with a third-party share offering to fund its Tennessee smelter project may face delays due to U.S. antitrust regulations, according to officials in legal and investment banking circles Thursday. This raised the likelihood that the capital increase, originally slated for completion this month, could be postponed. Any delay may also undermine Korea Zinc Chairman Choi Yun-beom’s plan to allocate about a 10 percent stake to the joint venture ahead of the Dec. 30 shareholder record date and counter the Young Poong-MBK Partners alliance at next year’s shareholders’ meeting. The alliance is the largest shareholder of the world’s biggest zinc smelter and has challenged Choi’s leadership since launching a tender offer on Sept. 13, 2024, arguing that his mismanagement has weakened the company’s financial health. Korea Zinc said Monday it plans to establish a joint venture with the U.S. government and corporations to build a large-scale smelter in Tennessee. The project entails an investment of about 10

Dec 18, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Korea Zinc's US smelter project faces possible delay amid antitrust hurdles
Banking & Finance

Kyobo Life chairman’s son takes helm of enterprise-wide AI transformation

Kyobo Life Insurance is stepping up its artificial intelligence transformation (AX) and digital business push by placing a third-generation owner in a leading role, as AI emerges as a critical competitive edge in the financial industry, the company said Thursday. The firm named Shin Jung-ha, an executive director and the eldest son of Kyobo Life Chairman Shin Chang-jae, as head of enterprise-wide AX support and group management strategy as part of its regular leadership reshuffle on Monday. “In his new role, Shin will take charge of developing and coordinating AX strategies for Kyobo Life and the group as a whole, while boosting the effectiveness of AI projects led by business divisions,” a Kyobo Life official said. Born in 1981, Shin previously headed the digital innovation new business team at Kyobo Information & Communications, now Kyobo DTS. He joined Kyobo Life in 2022 and has since played a key role in shaping the group’s digital transformation strategy. He was promoted to executive director last year. Kyobo Life’s latest reshuffle is widely seen as a clear signal that the

Dec 18, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Kyobo Life chairman’s son takes helm of enterprise-wide AI transformation
Policy

Korea Zinc's Tennessee smelter emerges as potential target for $200 bil. US fund

Korea Zinc’s smelter construction project in Tennessee could be discussed as a potential candidate to tap a $200 billion fund dedicated to U.S.-bound investment, Minister of Trade, Industry and Resources Kim Jung-kwan said Wednesday. Addressing market concerns that the 11 trillion won ($7.4 billion) project could place a heavy financial burden on the world’s largest zinc smelter, Kim said he views the decision “positively” from his standpoint as the minister overseeing critical minerals, despite the costs involved. “The project has been strongly welcomed by the U.S. Department of Commerce,” he said. “How the U.S. investment fund might be utilized will be a subject for further discussions with the department.” He added, however, that discussions have not yet progressed to that stage, stressing that the matter remains at a preliminary level. Last month, Seoul signed a memorandum of understanding with Washington on U.S.-bound investment, under which Korea plans to establish a $200 billion fund to support commercially viable projects in the United States. Kim’s remarks are i

Dec 17, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Korea Zinc's Tennessee smelter emerges as potential target for $200 bil. US fund
Banking & Finance

AIA Korea leverages sports to deepen customer engagement amid insurance industry's shift to wellness

AIA Korea is steadily strengthening sports-driven, customer-participation marketing focused on health and wellness, aiming to promote healthier lifestyles among customers while enhancing brand trust, the insurer said Wednesday. This move aligns with a broader shift in the insurance industry away from post-event compensation toward preventive care that helps manage and improve health in advance. The trend was reflected in a recent survey of insurance company CEOs conducted by the Korea Insurance Research Institute, which showed that health management services ranked as the most closely watched new business area for the third consecutive year. AIA Group’s partnership with English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur F.C. stands at the center of its shift toward preventive health care. Through its Global Principal Partnership, AIA Korea operates programs for its customers, employees, telesales representatives and Master Planners of AIA Premier Partners, offering exclusive brand experiences. One flagship initiative is the AIA-Spurs Children’s Health Football Program, a joint youth footba

Dec 17, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
AIA Korea leverages sports to deepen customer engagement amid insurance industry's shift to wellness
Companies

Young Poong, MBK support Korea Zinc's US project but reject financing method

The Young Poong–MBK Partners alliance said Tuesday that it is not opposed to Korea Zinc’s plan to build a large-scale smelter in the United States. It added, however, that the project should be pursued through a more transparent method, such as a rights offering to existing shareholders, rather than a third-party allotment. The alliance made the remarks after filing an injunction with the Seoul Central District Court to block the issuance of new shares under a third-party allotment. The allotment had been approved by Korea Zinc’s board the previous day to finance construction of the U.S. smelter, a project worth 11 trillion won ($7.5 billion). “Our action does not target the U.S. smelter project itself,” the alliance said in a statement. “The injunction is necessary because the new share issuance was structured to preserve Korea Zinc Chairman Choi Yun-beom’s control amid an ongoing management dispute, an act strictly prohibited under the Commercial Act and consistently rejected by Supreme Court precedents.” In a separate statement, Young Poong also stressed that it does

Dec 16, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Young Poong, MBK support Korea Zinc's US project but reject financing method
Banking & Finance

Internet banks ramp up child-focused products to lock in future customers

Internet-only banks are strengthening their lineups of financial products for minors in a bid to broaden their customer base and build a sustainable foundation for long-term profits, industry officials said Tuesday. Their offerings have recently expanded beyond children and teenagers to include products aimed at fetuses. These products feature simple app-based enrollment processes that eliminate the need for documents such as family relationship certificates, underscoring the convenience and accessibility that set internet banks apart. In October, Toss Bank introduced a prenatal installment savings account, completing a full-cycle lineup of financial products spanning pregnancy, childbirth and childrearing. The product is a flexible savings plan designed to help parents prepare for a child’s future from pregnancy onward to complement the bank’s existing child-focused checking accounts. Launched in 2023, the checking accounts marked the first time an internet-only bank enabled parents to open accounts for their children through fully digital procedures, without a face-to-face visit t

Dec 16, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Internet banks ramp up child-focused products to lock in future customers
Law & Crime

Crypto mogul Do Kwon may face separate trial in Korea despite 15-year US sentence

Do Kwon, the crypto tycoon at the center of the 2022 collapse of cryptocurrencies TerraUSD and Luna that caused an estimated $40 billion in investor losses, may face another trial and a jail sentence here if he is extradited to Korea in addition to the 15-year prison sentence given by a U.S. court, according to government officials and prosecutors Monday. It is widely expected that the 34-year-old Korean national may apply to the International Prisoner Transfer Program after serving half of his 15-year sentence, with U.S. prosecutors agreeing not to oppose such a request as part of a plea deal. This leaves open the possibility of his transfer to Korea. After his arrest in Montenegro in March 2023, Kwon pursued legal action seeking extradition to Korea rather than the U.S. He was ultimately transferred to the U.S. on Dec. 31, 2024, and sentenced on Thursday (local time). If sent back to Korea, Kwon would face a separate trial on charges including violations of the Capital Markets Act, and could receive additional punishment independent of the U.S. proceedings. The joint financial crimes un

Dec 15, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Crypto mogul Do Kwon may face separate trial in Korea despite 15-year US sentence
Companies

Young Poong, MBK challenge Korea Zinc’s $6.8 billion US smelter plan

Young Poong and MBK Partners criticized Korea Zinc’s push to build a smelter in the United States, saying on Monday that the plan runs counter to commercial logic and is designed to defend company Chairman Choi Yun-beom’s management control. They issued the objections after reports that the world’s largest zinc smelter plans to construct a strategic minerals smelter worth 10 trillion won ($6.8 billion) in the southeastern United States, with the U.S. government and corporations expected to contribute around 2 trillion won. The facility is slated to serve as a U.S.-based production hub for key strategic minerals, including antimony and germanium, which Korea Zinc currently manufactures domestically. The Young Poong-MBK alliance is the largest shareholder of Korea Zinc and has been challenging Choi’s managerial control since launching a tender offer on Sept. 13, 2024. Korea Zinc’s management convened an emergency board meeting and later approved a third-party allotment capital increase to fund the construction of a U.S. smelter. “As Korea Zinc’s largest shareholder, directors

Dec 15, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Young Poong, MBK challenge Korea Zinc’s $6.8 billion US smelter plan
Banking & Finance

KakaoBank accelerates overseas expansion with Indonesian digital bank

KakaoBank, Korea’s largest internet-only bank, aims to accelerate its global expansion by deepening its partnership with Superbank, an Indonesian digital bank in which it made its first overseas equity investment, the company said Sunday. KakaoBank acquired a 10 percent stake in Superbank in 2023 as part of a partnership with Grab, laying the groundwork for the Korean lender’s push into overseas markets. Since the investment, KakaoBank has worked closely with Superbank across a wide range of areas, including the bank’s launch, product and service planning, and advisory support on user interface and user experience design, steadily building its international capabilities. Most recently, KakaoBank helped launch Superbank’s new financial product, Kartu Untung, which was developed through more than a year of joint work based on KakaoBank’s concept. The bank was involved throughout the process, from product planning to mobile service design. Kartu Untung, meaning "lucky card," offers daily lottery-style cashback rewards to customers who deposit 50,000 rupiah. The gamified savings p

Dec 14, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
KakaoBank accelerates overseas expansion with Indonesian digital bank
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