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Koramco selected Asia sector leader by global ESG evaluator

The Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) picked Koramco REITs Management and Trust as the Asia office sector leader in ESG efforts. Korea Times fileBy Yoon Ja-youngKoramco REITs Management and Trust was selected as the office sector leader in Asia according to a global environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) benchmark. According to the country's leading REIT asset management firm, Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) picked it as the top performer in Asia's office sector.GRESB is one of the leading ESG benchmarks for financial markets, collecting, validating, scoring and independently benchmarking ESG data to provide business intelligence, engagement tools and regulatory reporting solutions for investors, asset managers and the wider industry. It evaluates real estate assets and their management firms regarding how they affect the environment and society as well as their relations with other parties involved. This year, a total of 1,820 entities from 74 countries around the world had their real estate assets, worth $6.9 trillion, evaluated i

Nov 2, 2022
Koramco selected Asia sector leader by global ESG evaluator

Samsung Electronics picks Samjong KPMG as auditor

Samjong KPMG headquarters in southern Seoul / Courtesy of Samjong KPMGBy Anna J. ParkSamsung Electronics has selected Samjong KPMG as its external auditor for the next three fiscal years. It is the first time ever that the accounting firm has been selected as the external auditor of the nation's largest company by market cap. The announcement came as a surprise to the local accounting industry, as expectations were that Samsung Electronics would go back to Samil PwC, the largest accounting firm in Korea. Samil PwC had been auditing Samsung Electronics for over four decades since the 1970s until 2019.But a revision to the country's accounting-related law forced Samsung Electronics to sign Deloitte Anjin as its external auditor from the fiscal years of 2020 to 2022. The revision of the External Audit Act in 2019 states that corporations are obligated to appoint an external auditor that has been designated by the government for three-year terms, following a six-year cycle of free appointments of external auditors. As the three-year contract with Deloitte Anjin is about to end soon, the

Nov 1, 2022By Anna J. Park
Samsung Electronics picks Samjong KPMG as auditor

Top 5 financial groups to supply $67 bil. to stabilize market

Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Kim Joo-hyun, fourth from left, stands next to chairmen of major financial groups in central Seoul, Tuesday. From left are, Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung, Woori Financial Group Chairman Son Tae-seung, KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyu, Kim, Korea Federation of Banks (KFB) Chairman Kim Kwang-soo, Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo and NH Financial Group Chairman Son Byung-hwan. YonhapBy Anna J. ParkFive major financial groups here have decided to provide ample liquidity worth 95 trillion won ($67 billion) by the end of this year in a bid to ease a bond market crunch and stabilize local financial markets.During a meeting with Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Kim Joo-hyun on Tuesday morning, the chairmen of the five groups pledged to inject a total of 73 trillion won into financial markets, while pooling another 12 trillion won into a bond market stabilization fund and another 10 trillion won for their group subsidiaries. They also vowed to refrain from issuing bank bonds, so that the local shor

Nov 1, 2022By Anna J. Park
Top 5 financial groups to supply $67 bil. to stabilize market

Renault Financial Services Korea changes name to Mobilize Financial Services

Logo of Mobilize Financial Services / Korea Times file By Yoon Ja-youngRenault Financial Services Korea, a firm of Renault Korea Motors, changed its name to Mobilize Financial Services, starting Nov. 1. With the new brand name, it aims to become the brand reference for Renault Korea Motors customers, offering a complete range of services related to the use of their cars.According to the company, the new name follows a name change by its headquarters in France. As RCI Bank and Services changed its name to Mobile Financial Services in May, the Korean branch followed suit.Mobile Financial Services is the specialized automotive finance subsidiary of Renault Group, a leading global automotive company with more than 100 years of expertise, offering a complete range of mobility financial services to more than 4 million Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi customers worldwide.The Korean branch was established in 2003. Currently, it operates various financial products such as installme

Nov 1, 2022
Renault Financial Services Korea changes name to Mobilize Financial Services

K bank to delay IPO to early next year

K bank headquarters in central Seoul / Courtesy of K bankBy Anna J. ParkK bank has decided to delay its initial public offering to early next year, amidst worsening investor sentiment and growing market concerns. According to the financial industry Monday, the country's first internet-only bank has recently notified its financial investors that it would change its target timeline for the IPO to January. Since passing the preliminary examination for the listing in September, the digital bank has been known to be aiming to complete the IPO process within this year. Market watchers view that the recent stock price plunge of KakaoBank, one of K bank's main competitors, partially influenced the internet-only bank's decision to delay its IPO. They point out that the stock price plunge of the representative peer company of K bank must have placed a big burden on its IPO.KakaoBank's stock price fell recently to lower than half its initial subscription IPO price of 39,000 won ($27). The stock price hit its lowest level of 15,800 won in late October, which is a huge nosedive from its highest p

Oct 31, 2022By Anna J. Park
K bank to delay IPO to early next year

Industrial output falls for 3rd month; retail sales, facility investment retreat in Sept.

This photo shows a port in Ulsan, 307 kilometers southeast of Seoul, packed with cars set to be exported, Sept. 16. YonhapKorea's industrial output fell in September for the third month in a row, data showed Monday, with retail sales and facility investment also losing ground, hinting the country's economic recovery may be losing steam.Industrial production declined 0.6 percent on-month in September, following a 0.1 percent on-month decrease the previous month, according to the data from Statistics Korea. From a year earlier, however, the output rose 3.1 percent.Output in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries fell 1.8 percent, due mainly to losses from sectors, such as chips and cars.The statistics agency said the decrease also came as Typhoon Hinnamnor, which hit the country in early September, disrupted steel production. "The output of chips also decreased due to the rising amount of inventories due to China's lockdown coupled with the sluggish information technology industry," said Eo Woon-sun, a senior Statistics Korea official.The service output also lost 0.3

Oct 31, 2022
Industrial output falls for 3rd month; retail sales, facility investment retreat in Sept.

Hana Bank partners with Lotte to manage assets of elderly clients

Hana Bank CEO Park Sung-ho, right, poses with Lotte Engineering & Construction CEO Ha Suk-joo at the builder's headquarters in Seoul, Oct. 28, after signing a partnership on the launch of an asset management service for elderly customers. Courtesy of Hana BankBy Lee Min-hyungHana Bank has teamed up with Lotte Engineering & Construction to launch a customized asset management service for senior customers, whose numbers are growing due to the nation's aging population, the lender said Sunday.The two companies will provide a comprehensive asset management service for elderly people who will live in the premium senior residential facility, VL Le West, built by the construction firm in the Magok Industrial Complex in Seoul.Hana Bank will offer special asset management programs for each resident. The service includes private asset management and consulting on the inheritance of their assets by their children.Experts and skilled financial consultants working for the lender's Living Trust Center will provide one-on-one consulting services for the residents, encompassing a broad range

Oct 30, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Hana Bank partners with Lotte to manage assets of elderly clients

How Samsung shares will fare under Lee's chairmanship

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong is approached by reporters as he leaves for lunch after appearing at the Seoul Central District Court for a trial hearing concerning his succession of leadership, Thursday. Yonhap By Yi Whan-wooThe outlook for share prices of Samsung Electronics and other affiliates is attracting keen market attention after Samsung Electronics' de facto leader Lee Jae-yong ended 10 years of vice chairmanship and was officially promoted as its executive chairman, Thursday.Analysts said Lee's promotion on its own will have little impact on the course of Samsung stock prices, which will depend instead on how elaborately Lee maps out a business vision for Korea's largest conglomerate. Some of the shares of Samsung Electronics, Samsung SDI and Samsung C&T, among other affiliates finished bullish across the benchmark KOSPI on the day of Lee's promotion but retreated on Friday. For instance, Samsung Electronics, the market bellwether and a leading

Oct 28, 2022By Yi Whan-woo
How Samsung shares will fare under Lee's chairmanship

Credit Suisse's Korea operation aims to maintain key status amid restructuring plan

The logo of Swiss bank Credit Suisse is seen at its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, March 24, 2021. Reuters-Yonhap By Anna J. ParkCredit Suisse announced a series of radical restructuring measures to revamp its global banking business on Thursday, after taking three months of thoroughly reviewing and reassessing its strategic future directions. The measures came as the Switzerland-headquartered bank posted its fourth straight quarterly loss for the third quarter of this year. According to its earnings announcement released earlier this week, the global lender lost $346 million in the third quarter alone, a drastic contrast from its $1 billion profit recorded a year ago.Countering months of market rumors of its possible crash, the bank's series of new strategic goals expressed its fresh determination to navigate through the current crisis by taking the drastic restructuring initiatives. According to the 166-year-old financial company, its new strategic goals wil

Oct 28, 2022By Anna J. Park
Credit Suisse's Korea operation aims to maintain key status amid restructuring plan

Shinhan's securities arm opens first office in Silicon Valley

Shinhan Securities CEO Lee Young-chang, second from left, poses while celebrating the firm's opening of an office in Silicon Valley, California, Oct. 25. Courtesy of Shinhan SecuritiesBy Lee Min-hyungShinhan Securities has opened an office in Silicon Valley, California ― the first among local brokerage houses ― with a view to enhancing its expertise in investment banking and its global startup network, the company said. According to the company, Shinhan Securities' Silicon Valley Representative Office started operating from Tuesday.The office will play a role as a bridgehead for Shinhan Financial Group to expand its global network and strengthen group-wide capabilities in investment banking, the Shinhan affiliate said. Shinhan Securities runs offices in the major cities of economic powerhouses and emerging economies, such as the United States, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Indonesia and China.The new office in the global tech hub is expected to help Shinhan establish a closer networking system with local startups and investors. The company also seeks fresh opportunities to find promising start

Oct 27, 2022By Lee Min-hyung
Shinhan's securities arm opens first office in Silicon Valley
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