Business - The Korea Times

Daol Investment put up for sale

Daol Investment & Securities headquarters on Yeouido, Seoul / Courtesy of Daol Financial GroupBy Anna J. ParkKorea's first-generation venture capital firm Daol Investment, formerly known as KTB Network, has been put up in the M&A market, as its parent company aims to secure liquidity amid market uncertainties. Daol Investment & Securities, a brokerage affiliate of Daol Financial Group which holds a 52 percent stake in the venture capital subsidiary, made it official Wednesday that it is up for sale. The brokerage company is aiming to sell the venture capital firm at a price of over 200 billion won ($151 million).“The sale of Daol Investment aims at preemptively securing liquidity and operating more stable businesses,” an official from the brokerage company said.The parent company of Daol Investment has been taking a series of aggressive restructuring measures to increase its liquidity level, as it is known to have one of the highest risk exposures to real estate project financing and alternative investments among local securities companies. The brokerage compa

Dec 7, 2022By Anna J. Park

Yoon's ex-election camp aide emerges as candidate to lead NongHyup Financial

Lee Suk-joon, right, then-minister of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, speaks during an annual parliamentary audit of his office in this photo taken in October 2016. Industry sources said Tuesday Lee is being considered as a potential candidate to lead NongHyup Banking Group. Korea Times fileBy Yi Whan-wooLee Suk-joon, former chief of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, is being considered as a potential candidate to lead NongHyup Banking Group, according to sources familiar with the matter, Tuesday.If realized, Lee will replace incumbent NongHyup Financial Group Chairman and CEO Son Byung-hwan, who was thought to be going for his second term after taking office in January 2021.A former career economic bureaucrat, Lee was the minister of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, which operates under the Prime Minister's Office, during the 2013-17 Park Geun-hye administration. The minister, in coordination with other ministers, is responsible for assisting the prime minister.Lee has ties with President Yoon Suk-yeol, working in his camp for the 2022 presi

Dec 6, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Yoon's ex-election camp aide emerges as candidate to lead NongHyup Financial

Korea Investment expected to take over KakaoBank stake

Korea Investment & Securities headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Korea Investment & Securities KakaoBank share would make company country's largest brokerageBy Anna J. ParkKorea Investment & Securities is expected to take over a significant stake in KakaoBank, currently held by its parent company as well as its affiliate. If that happens, the brokerage firm could become the country's top brokerage company with the most capital. Currently, Korea Investment Holdings ― the parent company of Korea Investment ― holds a 4-percent stake in KakaoBank, while Korea Investment Value Asset Management ― a subsidiary of Korea Investment ― owns 23.18 percent of the digital bank. Altogether, Korea Investment's related companies hold a 27.18-percent stake in the internet-only bank, making them the second largest shareholder of KakaoBank, following Kakao. The market speculation over Korea Investment's plan to take over the stake started in September when it asked the Financial Servic

Dec 6, 2022By Anna J. Park

Korea Investment expected to take over KakaoBank stake

Banks mull over private offering of bonds in fresh attempt to raise capital

A row of ATM machines belonging to banks are lined up in Seoul in this file photo. Korea Times fileBy Yi Whan-wooBanks are considering issuing bonds that will be privately offered to other lenders, in a fresh attempt to raise money, as the financial authorities are pressing them to refrain from issuing bonds that are publicly put up for sale on the market, according to multiple lenders, Monday.The private offering of bonds has never taken place in the banking industry before, while the public offering of bonds has been a widely practiced way to generate capital, as banks' bonds are highly creditworthy and therefore popular among investors. Recently, the public offering of bonds is not being encouraged as it can worsen the liquidity shortage suffered by commercial businesses in the bond and short-term money markets.The debt market has been a major way for commercial firms ― whose bonds tend to have lower credit ratings than banks' bonds ― to raise capital. But investor sentiment has weakened toward corporate bonds and commercial papers in the wake of the default on debt payments conce

Dec 5, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Banks mull over private offering of bonds in fresh attempt to raise capital

FSS urges Shinhan Bank to bolster anti-money laundering system

The headquarters of Shinhan Bank in central Seoul / Courtesy of Shinhan BankBy Anna J. ParkThe Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has asked Shinhan Bank to improve its anti-money laundering (AML) management system, particularly in the areas of digital asset businesses and overseas branches.According to the financial industry Monday, the FSS made the recommendation at the end of last month to bolster the bank's AML system, reflecting the financial watchdog's previous inspection results. The FSS discovered that Shinhan Bank did not have a separate organization or staff dedicated to identifying digital asset-related transactions and assessing risk factors involved in virtual asset management. In addition, the bank did not have a computer system to monitor digital asset-related transactions. The FSS urged the bank to allocate enough staff and to set up its computer system so that the bank can properly assume its monitoring role to identify digital asset-related transactions and assess the risk factors entailed.The financial authorities also asked Shinhan Bank to make it obligatory to co

Dec 5, 2022By Anna J. Park

FSS urges Shinhan Bank to bolster anti-money laundering system

JB Financial Group awarded as outstanding ESG company

JB Financial Group senior executive Kim Seon-ho, right, stands next to Koscom CEO Hong Woo-sun, after the financial group is awarded by the KCGS as this year's outstanding company for its ESG standards during a ceremony held at the Korea Exchange (KRX) located on Yeouido, Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of JB Financial GroupBy Anna J. Park JB Financial Group has been awarded as an outstanding company for its environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria by the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability (KCGS), as the financial group received a comprehensive A rating from the corporate assessment agency.According to the financial group on Monday, JB Financial received an A rating for its environmental standards, an A+ regarding its social criteria and an A for its governance perspectives from the KCGS, which made the financial group's overall rating stand at an A-level grade.Since 2011, the KCGS has been evaluating listed companies' non-financial achievements, including ESG standards. This year, the evaluation was held on a total of 1,033 companies. “With receiving

Dec 5, 2022By Anna J. Park

JB Financial Group awarded as outstanding ESG company

Hana Financial promotes mental health with Dr. Oh Eun-young

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, left in front row, poses with psychiatrist Oh Eun-young, right in front row, as the financial group holds a presentation at the Hana Global Campus located in Incheon's Cheongna district, Friday. Courtesy of Hana Financial GroupBy Anna J. ParkHana Financial Group announced Sunday that it hosted a presentation with renowned psychiatrist Dr. Oh Eun-young late last week to provide practical advice for the group's employees to address mental health issues both at work and at home. About 500 workers attended the event held on Friday at Hana Global Campus, the financial group's employee training facility located in Incheon. Dr. Oh gave advice, ranging from career to child rearing, based on stories sent by those who attended the event. With the huge popularity of Dr. Oh in the country for her frequent appearances on various TV shows and other events, the financial group had to draw lots to select the 500 people who would be able to attend the event, out of numerous applications sent in from the group's 15 subsidiaries and related companies. Over 2

Dec 4, 2022By Anna J. Park

Hana Financial promotes mental health with Dr. Oh Eun-young

Eximbank, Statistics Korea sign MOU for cooperation in ODA

Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) Chairman and President Yoon Hee-sung, right, poses with Statistics Korea Commissioner Han Hoon after signing an MOU to cooperate in ODA projects at the bank's headquarters in Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of EximbankBy Yoon Ja-youngThe Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF), managed by the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank), signed an MOU with Statistics Korea to cooperate in international development projects and spread Korea's statistics system.Eximbank Chairman and President Yoon Hee-sung signed an MOU with Statistics Korea Commissioner Han Hoon at the bank's headquarters in Seoul, Friday, to cooperate in international development cooperation projects, from launch to follow-up management. The bank has been assigned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance to operate and manage the EDCF, which was launched in 1987 to assist the economic development of developing countries. The fund aims to support these countries in industrial development and economic stability as well as promoting economic exchanges with Korea by providing long-term, low-in

Dec 4, 2022

Eximbank, Statistics Korea sign MOU for cooperation in ODA

Listed firms obligated to issue English regulatory filings 'in stages' from 2024

Kim So-young, vice chairman of Korea's Financial Services Commission, speaks during a virtual meeting with his Chinese and Japanese counterparts in Seoul in this photo provided by the commission, Nov. 3. YonhapKorea's financial regulator said Friday that it will obligate listed firms to provide corporate filings in English "in stages" from 2024 as it seeks to expand foreigners' access to business information."In consideration of the level of preparations by businesses, we will make it obligatory in stages centering on information deemed to be indispensable for investors," Kim So-young, vice head of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), told an event at the headquarters of the bourse operator Korea Exchange in Seoul."We plan to significantly improve information-access conditions in a way that foreign investors can receive sufficient information in a timely manner," he added. Companies with large assets will first be subject to the obligation, the FSC said.Listed companies holding 10 trillion won ($7.7 billion) or larger worth of assets should issue English regulatory filings from 2

Dec 2, 2022

Listed firms obligated to issue English regulatory filings 'in stages' from 2024

Mirae Asset Securities rated “A” by two ESG evaluations agencies

Mirae Asset Securities' headquarters in Seoul / Korea Times fileBy Yoon Ja-youngMirae Asset Securities was rated “A” in environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) management by two of the country's major ESG evaluation agencies. According to the securities company, it got an “A” rating for its ESG efforts this year from the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability and Sustinvest, both of which are leading ESG evaluation agencies. It is the only local brokerage that was rated “A” by them both.As Mirae Asset Securities is seeking a leap forward as a global investment bank, its ESG efforts have been acknowledged by overseas evaluation agencies as well.It ranked sixth among 542 global firms categorized in the “Diversified Finance” sector in terms of ESG evaluation, announced by S&P Global in October. It is the highest ranking among local brokerage firms, and in the top 1 percentile among global peers. Mirae Asset Securities has also been expanding its channels for disclosing its achievements in ESG management

Dec 1, 2022

Banking & Finance