Business - The Korea Times

Korean banks struggle to diversify business portfolios

Local lenders lag behind global players due to heavy-handed regulationsBy Lee Yeon-wooAccessing financial services was relatively simple in the past, since there were few options other than to physically visit a bank branch to do that. With the advent of digitalization, however, competitors from the IT industry have entered the financial sector, equipped with innovative services that are much more convenient to use.This global phenomenon, often referred to as the big blur, resulted in the diminishing competitiveness of traditional banks, thereby forcing the financial industry to diversify its business portfolio in order to survive.Last July, JPMorgan Chase & Co. announced plans to enter the tourism industry by acquiring restaurant website, Infatuation, and a travel mileage platform called cxLoyalty. Various global banks, such as Bank of America, Deutsche Bank and DBS Bank in Singapore, have since followed suit.Even banks in Japan, which has been suffering from a protracted economic recession, are striving to increase their profits outside of interest earnings, encouraged by the g

Sep 5, 2023By Lee Yeon-woo

Korean banks struggle to diversify business portfolios

KB women's golf tournament to tee off Sept. 7

gettyimagesbankBy Yoon Ja-youngKB Financial Group will host the KB Financial Star Championship, a major KLPGA Tour tournament, at Blackstone Golf Club in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, from Sept. 7 to 10. Offering 1.2 billion won ($906,000) in total prize money, the tournament is expected to see a heated competition with participants including “major queen” Chun In-gee, defending champion Park Min-ji and Lee Ye-won, the top-ranked player in KLPGA prize money, as well as rookie sensations of the season like Bang Shin-sil and Hwang You-min. A promotional image for the 2023 KB Financial Star Championship / Courtesy of KB Financial Group"I have always dreamed of winning the KB Financial Star Championship and it is also a course I really like personally. I want to win this tournament with a good record,” Lee Ye-won said. This year's tournament will adjust the course length to add to the excitement of the game and bring out the best in the players.The 11th hole (par 4) will be extended to encourage aggressive shots from the players, while the 18th hole (par 5), where the winn

Sep 5, 2023

KB women's golf tournament to tee off Sept. 7

Korea Gold Exchange put up for sale

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkThe Korea Gold Exchange and the Korea Gold Exchange Digital Asset (KORDA), trading platforms for precious metals, have been put up for sale. Their owners, SG Private Equity and LX Investment, have initiated the process to find new owners.According to the investment banking industry, NH Investment & Securities, the lead manager of the sale deal, plans to distribute a letter to potential buyers this week, in order to begin a preliminary demand survey. One hundred percent of the common shares of both the gold exchange and the digital trading platform are to be sold during the sale process. Some 67.2 percent of the shares of the two entities are held by a special purpose company (SPC) set up by SG Private Equity and LX Investment in 2018, while the rest of the shares are each held by two individuals. Founded in 2005, the Korea Gold Exchange is a company that deals with distributing and selling various precious metals, such as gold, silver and palladium, acquired from refining companies. The firm is also engaged in manufacturing and selling jewelry items;

Sep 5, 2023By Anna J. Park

Toss Bank launches simpler, safer 'jeonse' deposit loans

Toss Bank CEO Hong Min-taek speaks during a press conference at Conrad Seoul Hotel in Seoul, Tuesday. YonhapOverseas remittance service to be available during H2By Anna J. ParkToss Bank, one of Korea's three internet-based banks, launched a housing rental deposit loan product on Tuesday, aiming to innovate the country's cumbersome and complicated rent system. The loan product will be available for borrowers seeking to prepare the deposit money either for monthly housing rental contracts or for “jeonse” contracts. Jeonse is a unique lump-sum deposit payment in Korea for leasing a home for two years, without paying monthly installments to a landlord.Normally, it takes at least two to four weeks with many visits to an offline branch of a major bank in Korea for a borrower to get a rental deposit loan. That's because the borrower is required to submit various documents, including leasing contracts and legal certificates of income, employment and family relations, among other things. Toss Bank said it has streamlined the whole process, dispensing with the need to visit a bank

Sep 5, 2023By Anna J. Park

Toss Bank launches simpler, safer 'jeonse' deposit loans

Hana Financial Group bolsters foreign investor relations

By Yoon Ja-youngHana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo is strengthening communication with global investors, engaging in investor relations activities in Hong Kong, Asia's financial hub, on Sept. 5 and 6.It is Ham's second on-site communication event with investors overseas this year, following an investor relations session in Singapore, which was jointly held by Korean financial companies in May.Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo speaks to global investors at an investor relations session held in Singapore in this May file photo. Courtesy of Hana Financial GroupAccording to the financial group, Ham is holding marathon meetings with executives from approximately 10 global investors, including not only long-term investors in Hana but also potential investors who have recently shown interest in the group. He will share the group's financial performance, sound asset quality, medium to long-term growth strategies and vision, as well as its ESG management, which has already reached a global standard. He also plans to explain the group's shareholder return policy, which is a

Sep 5, 2023

Hana Financial Group bolsters foreign investor relations

Kakao's financial affiliates make foray into Thai market

Kakao Pay's office in Pangyo, Bundang District of Seongnam / Courtesy of Kakao PayBy Anna J. ParkKakao's financial subsidiaries are making their successful first foray into the Thai market, after choosing Thailand as the main target country of their overseas business expansion. Kakao Pay began providing its payment services in the country last week, following KakaoBank's partnering with Thailand's leading financial group in June to pursue a virtual banking license there.Considering even major domestic financial companies haven't yet encroached into the Southeast Asian country, due to the country's uniquely tight regulations on foreign financial firms, the incipient achievements by the Kakao affiliates in the largest economy of Southeast Asia are seen as a significant feat by market watchers. Since last week, Kakao Pay's mobile and online payment service has become available at over 3,000 shops, including major department stores, pharmacies and stores in Thailand, as Central Retail, which is Thailand's largest retail group, began supporting the use of the Korean payment service at the

Sep 4, 2023By Anna J. Park

Kakao's financial affiliates make foray into Thai market

KB releases commercial featuring Park Eun-bin

A promotional image for KB Financial Group's K-Bee Project commercial / Courtesy of KB Financial GroupBy Yoon Ja-youngKB Financial Group released a new commercial featuring its new model, Park Eun-bin, the actress starred in the internationally popular series, "Extraordinary Attorney Woo."The commercial, available on the group's YouTube channel, highlights the genuine efforts made by ordinary people to create hope in their own ways. It introduces the K-Bee Project, whereby Park meets young beekeepers including high school students who keep bees as school club activities and an influencer who promotes the importance of bees.In another episode titled "KB Little Library," the actress introduces stories of a fishing village leader who turned closed schools into libraries, the manager of a small library where children can freely read and play, and a man who delivers books to residents in need."It was an honor to introduce people who are spreading a positive influence throughout the country. Through this opportunity, I want to express my gratitude once again to everyone around us who conve

Sep 4, 2023

KB releases commercial featuring Park Eun-bin

Hana Financial Group continues ESG management with young honorary ambassadors

Hana Financial Group Vice Chairman Lee Eun-hyung, second row center, poses with college students appointed as the group's honorary ambassadors at the group headquarters in Seoul, Thursday, during the ceremony to mark the completion of their three-month tenure during which they promoted the group globally. Courtesy of Hana Financial GroupBy Yoon Ja-young Hana Financial Group announced that it held a ceremony to mark the end of the three-month tenure of its 17th team of SMART ambassadors at its headquarters in Seoul, Thursday, an honorary ambassadors program operated by the group for college students.Since its launch in June, the 50 university students selected for the 17th team engaged in various missions. These included domestic and international social contribution activities, brainstorming ideas for expanding the Hana One Q app and platform-based services, group branding in collaboration with sports teams and creating content for the group's official social media accounts.They also participated in overseas volunteer activities and practiced the group's mission of "growing together

Sep 3, 2023

Hana Financial Group continues ESG management with young honorary ambassadors

Analysts split over outlook for GS E&C

The logo of GS Engineering & Construction (E&C) is seen outside its headquarters in central Seoul, Aug. 27. Korea Times file By Yi Whan-wooGS Engineering & Construction (E&C) is receiving mixed projections on the future course of its credit rating, following poor construction of an apartment complex and the planned suspension of its business. A Seoul-based credit rating agency, NICE lowered GS E&C's long-term ratings from “stable” to “negative,” Wednesday, about four months after a parking lot on an apartment complex built by the company collapsed in Incheon.As a punitive measure, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on Aug. 27 that it will seek a 10-month suspension on GS E&C's operation.“Under the circumstances, business uncertainties will grow as the builder will need to re-construct the damaged apartment complex and is likely to report a net loss in the remaining two quarters of this year,” NICE said.The agency also forecast the GS will s

Sep 1, 2023By Yi Whan-woo

Samsung Electronics stock price soars on foldable phones, AI chips

Samsung Electronics building in Seocho District in southern Seoul / Yonhap By Anna J. ParkThe stock price of Samsung Electronics has been on the rise for two consecutive trading sessions, following news of its supply of high-bandwidth memory product HBM3 to Nvidia.The stock price of the Korean tech giant ended at 71,200 won ($53.96) on Monday's closing, a 0.28 percent increase from Friday's session, continuing its upward trend since Friday.The price of Samsung Electronics soared to 71,000 won on Friday's session, marking a 6.13 percent increase from the previous day. This is the first time in a month that the stock price has reclaimed the 70,000 won mark since Aug. 1 when it closed at 71,100 won.Friday's surge is largely attributed to media reports earlier in the afternoon, announcing the Korean tech giant will start supplying NVIDIA with the fourth-generation HBM3, as early as next month. HBM is a standardized high-speed stacked memory technology, providing wide ch

Sep 1, 2023By Anna J. Park

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