Business - The Korea Times

Kyobo Life employees to go by English nicknames to create horizontal workplace culture

Kyobo Life Insurance Chairman and CEO Shin Chang-jae speaks at a business strategy meeting at company headquarters, July 26. Courtesy of Kyobo Life Insurance ?By Anna J. ParkKyobo Life Insurance employees will refer to one another by their English nicknames, omitting job position titles, starting Monday, the firm's 65th foundation anniversary. The move aims to create a more horizontal workplace and flexible corporate culture within the company. According to the insurance firm on Friday, employees have finished picking their own English nicknames and registered the names into the corporate intranet system. It is regarded as a rare move for a company long known for its conservative and traditional corporate culture. “Aiming to foment a horizontal and flexible organizational culture, Kyobo Life Insurance has decided to adopt this new English nickname system,” an official at Kyobo Life told The Korea Times, Friday. “While employees will be calling each other by their En

Aug 4, 2023By Anna J. Park

Kyobo Life employees to go by English nicknames to create horizontal workplace culture

Korean insurers head overseas as domestic market becomes saturated

gettyimagesbankBy Yi Whan-wooInsurance companies in Korea are bolstering efforts to expand their business activities in overseas markets in a bid to nurture growth engines as the domestic market has become saturated, according to industry sources.The companies include both non-life insurers and life insurers. They are especially interested in the Southeast Asian market as the region is undergoing rapid economic development and has a large young population which could serve as a potential pool of new customers.Of the non-life insurers, Dongbu Insurance has been aggressively expanding its business in Vietnam with the acquisition of controlling stakes in three Vietnamese companies beginning in 2015.The Seoul-headquartered company in June signed an agreement to acquire a 75 percent stake in Saigon-Hanoi Insurance (BSH), which is ranked ninth in the Vietnamese insurance market.The deal comes after the acquisition of a 37.32 percent stake in PTI in 2015 and then a 75 percent stake in VNI in February this year.PTI and VNI were ranked fifth and 10th respectively in the Vietnamese insurance i

Aug 4, 2023By Yi Whan-woo

Korean insurers head overseas as domestic market becomes saturated

Shinhan opens 1st group-wide data platform in banking industry

The logo of Shinhan Bank, Shinhan Financial Group's flagship affiliate, is seen on the entrance of the group's headquarters in central Seoul in this file photo. Korea Times fileBy Yi Whan-wooShinhan Financial Group officially launched its first group-wide network connecting the data of all its major affiliates, the company announced on Monday.It said the launch of the One Data network comes after running a six-month test operation, during which it received feedback from more than 1,700 employees, both executives and regular employees.The network is now optimized for its goal of standardizing data across its major affiliates, including Shinhan Bank, Shinhan Card, Shinhan Securities and Shinhan Life Insurance, the group explained. “We expect our customer-oriented digital banking services will accelerate with the launch of the One Data network,” it said in a press release. “We also expect to expand support for customers, both individuals and corporations, by fully capitalizing on a wide range of available data.” The country's second-largest banking group, Shinhan

Aug 3, 2023By Yi Whan-woo

Shinhan opens 1st group-wide data platform in banking industry

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

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

IBK chief underlines innovation on bank's anniversary

Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) Chairman and CEO Kim Sung-tae delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the bank's 62nd founding anniversary at its headquarters in central Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of IBKBy Yi Whan-wooIndustrial Bank of Korea (IBK) Chairman and CEO Kim Sung-tae addressed the need for innovation on the state-run lender's path to becoming a global top-notch banking firm, during its 62nd founding anniversary, Tuesday.“IBK reached where it is now after taking the paths untaken and being faithfully committed to Korea's economic development over the past 62 years,” the chairman said during the ceremony at IBK headquarters in central Seoul.The ceremony was attended by around 300 IBK employees, both executives and rank-and-file staffers.He noted the bank's aggregate assets are “just a step away” from the milestone of 500 trillion won, and that the spirit of innovation is required more than ever to accomplish its goals and move forward.“Under the circumstances, I ask you to focus on better serving customers and society, and at the same time enhan

Aug 1, 2023By Yi Whan-woo

IBK chief underlines innovation on bank's anniversary

Lone Star seeks to cancel int'l tribunal order against Korea

This Nov. 11, 2006 file photo shows Lone Star's signboard in a building located in Gangnam, Seoul. YonhapU.S. private equity firm Lone Star Funds has filed an application to cancel an international tribunal's order for Korea to pay $216.5 million plus interest over its sell-off of a local bank, according to the justice ministry on Monday.In August 2022, the Washington, D.C.-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) delivered the verdict in the investor-state dispute settlement suit that Lone Star filed in 2012 to demand $4.68 billion in compensation from South Korea's government. The ordered amount is about 4.6 percent of Lone Star's demand.In addition, Seoul was ordered to pay interest to Lone Star, which the government estimates to be around 18.5 billion won ($14.5 million). The ICSID notified on Saturday that the Texan firm has filed for the cancellation application without providing a further reason for the claim, the ministry said. It is largely expected for Lone Star to have judged the ordered amount to be too small."We plan to seek to apply for t

Aug 1, 2023

Lone Star seeks to cancel int'l tribunal order against Korea

KB expands presence in Cambodia via merger of 2 affiliates

KB Financial Group headquarters in Seoul / Korea Times fileBy Lee Min-hyungKB Kookmin Bank is expanding its presence in Cambodia by merging its two affiliates there ― Prasac Microfinance Institution and Kookmin Bank Cambodia. KB aims to intensify rivalry against the country's market leader ABA Bank. The combined net profit of Prasac and Kookmin Bank Cambodia is the second-largest following that of ABA in the Southeast Asian country in the first half.The two KB affiliates are forecast to receive final approvals from the Southeast Asian country's authorities there over the merger in the near future. Cambodian authorities granted preliminary approvals recently, and they will be able to operate as a combined entity as soon as they win a legal license, according to KB.For years, KB is stepping up its efforts to diversify its sales channels in Asian markets, identifying the region as a major future revenue stream. The company is also widening its footing in Indonesia amid toughening market competition in Korea.In 2020, KB acquired a 70 percent stake in Prasac and purchased the remaining 30

Jul 31, 2023By Lee Min-hyung

KB expands presence in Cambodia via merger of 2 affiliates

K-pop band aespa makes special appearance on KB web drama

By Yi Whan-wooKB Kookmin Bank released a web drama featuring a special appearance by members of the K-pop girl band aespa, as a part of the bank's long-term efforts to attract young customers, the company announced on Monday.A promotional poster for KB Kookmin Bank's web drama, which translates roughly as “Walk into the Wilderness 2023” / Courtesy of KB Kookmin BankRoughly translated as “Walk into the Wilderness 2023,” the web drama is a romantic fantasy in which three university students interact with each other in both the real world and the metaverse ― a fully realized virtual world that combines the use of 3D technology.The web drama is a sequel to one released in 2022. It consists of four episodes, with the first episode being released on July 28 on KB Kookmin Bank's YouTube channel. The remaining three will be introduced on Fridays at 6 p.m. KB Kookmin Bank underlined that the story is not for promoting the company and is rather intended to “let young people have fun watching it.”In particular, the company noted the target audience is Generat

Jul 31, 2023By Yi Whan-woo

K-pop band aespa makes special appearance on KB web drama

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

Banking & Finance