Business - The Korea Times

Life insurers to continue facing unfavorable external biz environment in H2

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. Park Major life insurance companies' earnings during the first half of this year showed a sharp year-on-year decrease amid rising interest rates and global monetary tightening policies. It is anticipated that the external business environment faced by local life insurers is not likely to change much during the second half of the year either. According to Kyobo Life's H1 earnings report, the life insurer posted a net profit of 320 billion won ($244 million) during the first half, which is a 47.5 percent plunge from the same period last year.The fall in year-on-year net profit is noteworthy given that the life insurer logged an increase in its revenue during the first half compared to the previous year. The firm's H1 revenue stood at 8.3 trillion won, which is a 13.6 percent year-on-year increase. It is also the highest H1 revenue posted by the firm during the past five years. At the same time, however, the firm experienced its lowest level of both operating and net profits in the first half of this year, out of its five-year records. The company explained tha

Aug 17, 2022By Anna J. Park

Life insurers to continue facing unfavorable external biz environment in H2

Woori to offer $17.5 billion for vulnerable groups

Woori Financial Group Chairman Son Tae-seung / Courtesy of Woori Financial Group By Lee Min-hyungWoori Financial Group will provide financial aid worth 23 trillion won ($17.55 billion) for the next three years for socially vulnerable groups here, the company said Wednesday.Woori's four affiliates ― Woori Bank, Woori Card, Woori Financial Capital and Woori Savings Bank ― will join the so-called co-prosperity finance project. Other Woori subsidiaries will take part in the group-wide corporate social responsibility program (CSR) later as well.The company will offer a series of financial aid packages in three areas. A total of 17.2 trillion won will be used to provide loans for young people's residential stabilization and the self-employed who are suffering from the financial effects of the pandemic, Woori said.The company also allocated 3.5 trillion won in order to offer loan programs targeting low-income earners. Woori will also offer favorable interest rates to vulne

Aug 17, 2022By Lee Min-hyung

Woori to offer $17.5 billion for vulnerable groups

Standard Chartered Bank chief to visit Seoul in late August

Standard Chartered (SC) Bank Chief Executive Bill Winters is scheduled to visit Korea in late August, making a return trip following his last visit in August 2020, when he stayed for a month to check on Korea operations and the banking environment here. Courtesy of SC Bank KoreaSC Bank Korea marks 15% rise in net profit during 1st halfBy Yi Whan-wooStandard Chartered (SC) Bank Chief Executive Bill Winters will come to Korea later this month, making a return trip following his last visit in August 2020, according to the Seoul branch office of the London-headquartered multinational bank and financial sources, Wednesday.SC Bank Korea confirmed the chief executive's scheduled visit but did not give further details, including the time of his arrival, duration of his stay, agenda to be discussed or the high-profile Korean figures that he has arranged to meet.Financial sources speculate that the nature of the trip will be mainly to check on its Korea operations, which have shown steady performance over the past years. It is now the only foreign lender providing retail services after Citiban

Aug 17, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Standard Chartered Bank chief to visit Seoul in late August

Korean insurers seek to capitalize on China's growing online market

Korean insurers are increasingly setting up joint ventures with Chinese entities to tap into the market for online insurance products there. gettyimagesbankBy Kim Bo-eunKorean insurers are on track to capture opportunities in China's fast-growing online market for insurance products.Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance last week secured approval from Chinese authorities to set up a joint venture with local entities including China's bigtech company Tencent.Accordingly, the Samsung affiliate's subsidiary in China will be converted into a joint venture, under which the insurer will own 37 percent of shares and Tencent 32 percent. The remaining shares will be held by a number of Chinese investors.Samsung's non-life insurer plans to offer its products utilizing Tencent's platform, which millennials and Gen Z consumers access on a daily basis.The Samsung insurance affiliate is not the first among Korean players in the same industry to set up a joint entity with local companies in China.Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance set up a joint venture on the mainland in April 2020, with Chinese in

Aug 16, 2022By Kim Bo-eun

Korean insurers seek to capitalize on China's growing online market

SoftBank Ventures Asia up for sale on M&A market

Korean-Japanese billionaire SoftBank Group Chairman and CEO Son Masayoshi (also known by the Korean name Son Jeong-ui) / NewsisBy Anna J. ParkSoftBank Ventures Asia, the venture capital arm of SoftBank Group, is reportedly seeking a new owner, a move that coincides with SoftBank Group's largest ever quarterly loss of 30.5 trillion won ($23.3 billion) posted in the second quarter, this year. Although the venture capital firm hasn't yet officially acknowledged market rumors about its potential sale in the M&A market, financial industry sources say that the company has been contacting local major financial groups lately as well as various conglomerates to gauge their interest in buying the entire stake of the firm owned by SoftBank Group.According to sources, conglomerates like Shinsegae, Hanwha and Hyundai Motor were some of the firms contacted by the firm over the potential sale earlier this year. Major financial groups including Mirae Asset Group and KB Financial Group have also been reportedly talking with SoftBank Ventures Asia over the matter. Market watchers expect conglomera

Aug 16, 2022By Anna J. Park

SoftBank Ventures Asia up for sale on M&A market

Will trading of SillaJen stocks resume?

Retail investors of SillaJen hold a protest in front of the Korea Exchange's office in Seoul, urging the exchange operator to resume trading of the scandal-tainted biopharmaceutical firm. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungSillaJen faces a crucial week, as the firm's six-month grace period to avert a possible delisting from the local stock market is scheduled to end on Aug. 18. In February, the Kosdaq-listed biopharmaceutical company was given a grace period to improve its business practices from the market committee of the secondary trading board here.SillaJen has to submit a report in 15 business days from the end of the period and show detailed evidence of any measures it has taken for business improvement with confirmation by experts.The Korea Exchange will then hold the Kosdaq market committee meeting 20 business days after the submission of the report and decide whether to delist the company from the stock market.In January, the Korea Exchange decided to delist SillaJen from the local stock market, citing a negative outlook regarding the firm's sustainable growth. But the company secured a

Aug 16, 2022By Lee Min-hyung

Online lender K-Bank's H1 net hits record high

K-bank headquarters in Seoul / YonhapKorean online lender K-Bank said Tuesday it posted the strongest performance for any first half on increased interest revenue. K-Bank's first-half net income stood at 45.7 billion won ($34.9 million), far beyond the 22.5 billion-won annual net profit of last year and marking the highest first-half earnings since its launch in 2017, the bank's data showed. The online lender attributed the record earnings to more account openings, expansion in loan portfolios and diversified sources of profit. First-half interest revenue soared to a record 172.1 billion won, thanks to the rising interest rates.The internet-only bank reported a steep growth in mortgage loans, in particular. As of end-June, the portion of its collateral-based loan plans against total lending stood at 21.1 percent, sharply up from 13.7 percent from a year ago.But its second-quarter net profit fell to 21.3 billion won from 24.5 billion won a year earlier, the bank said in a statement. The fall in quarterly net profit was the result of increased provisions for bad debt.In July, the Bank

Aug 16, 2022

Online lender K-Bank's H1 net hits record high

Independence fighter's descendants benefit from KB's housing renovation project

Descendants of Tak Young-eui, an independence fighter during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial period, pose with other participants during a ceremony to mark the renovation of their house in Jeongseon County in Gangwon Province, in this photo released by KB Kookmin Bank, Monday. The renovation is part of a project of the bank aimed at helping families descended from independence movement figures. Courtesy of KB Kookmin BankBy Yi Whan-wooDespite their ancestors' sacrifice and dedication to the country, some descendants of Korean patriots live in poverty. Descendants of Tak Young-eui, the late independence fighter during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial period, were no exception.Their house in a rural town in Jeongseon County in Gangwon Province was old. Its roof and drain pipes as well as the interior needed repairing, something which the family couldn't afford. KB Kookmin Bank said Monday that it renovated the house belonging to a daughter-in-law and a grandson of Tak, in its project aimed at supporting families of patriots, on the occasion of Liberation Day, Aug. 15 ― the day on which Impe

Aug 15, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Independence fighter's descendants benefit from KB's housing renovation project

Suspicious international wire transfers at local banks grow

The headquarters of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) located on Yeouido, Seoul / Yonhap Total of abnormal remittances reaches $6.54 billionBy Anna J. ParkAs a follow-up to the ongoing investigation into suspicious international money transfer transactions of over 4.1 trillion won ($3.37 billion) over the last year at Woori Bank and Shinhan Bank, other major local banks have also spotted records of abnormal international remittances during the past year, amounting to some $3.15 billion. In total, a whopping $6.54 billion in suspicious international money transfers took place over the past year at various local banks. According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on Sunday, 26 companies are being investigated for involvement in suspicious international remittances of $3.39 billion at Woori and Shinhan banks.The amount is $200 million more than the previous number of abnormal remittance transactions calculated at the two banks by the financial authority a

Aug 14, 2022By Anna J. Park

Suspicious international wire transfers at local banks grow

BC Card acquires Indonesian software company

BC Card CEO Choi Won-Seok, left, and Cranium Indonesia CEO William King pose after signing a deal on acquiring a 67-percent share in Cranium Indonesia at BC Card's headquarters in Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of BC Card By Yi Whan-wooBC Card has purchased an Indonesian software developer called Cranium Indonesia in its push to expand its presence in the Southeast Asian market. The company said Sunday that it has signed a deal to acquire a 67-percent stake in Cranium Indonesia, which offers IT services to Indonesian clients in both the public and private sectors.Clients include Bank Mandiri, Indonesia's largest state-run bank, and Telkom Indonesia, a multinational telecom conglomerate.“We believe Cranium Indonesia will help us spur growth momentum for global IT services that we are targeting as one of the next growth engines,” BC Card CEO Choi Won-seok said.BC Card is developing an international financial settlement system to connect Indonesia with Thailand, Vietnam and o

Aug 14, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

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