Business - The Korea Times

Prolonged strike may hamper KDB's move to sell off DSME

Subcontracted workers of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) hold a rally as a part of their strike demanding a wage hike, in front of the headquarters of main creditor Korea Development Bank in Yeouido, Seoul, Tuesday. The strike took place at DSME's dockard on Geoje Island, South Gyeongsang Province, for 49 days as of Wednesday. YonhapBy Yi Whan-wooA protracted strike by subcontracted workers of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) is emerging as a new stumbling block in state-run Korea Development Bank's (KDB) efforts to find a new buyer for the loss-making shipbuilder, raising fears of additional losses and tarnished credibility.KDB is DSME's main creditor and largest shareholder with a 55.7 percent stake.The strike stretched into the 49th day on Wednesday, with negotiating parties making little progress over the workers' demand for a 30-percent increase in wages and a 300-percent increase in bonuses to cope with soaring inflation.Speaking on condition of anonymity, a KDB official told The Korea Times, Wednesday, that the strike will not hurt the se

Jul 20, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Prolonged strike may hamper KDB's move to sell off DSME

FSS finds evidence of suspicious crypto-related currency exchanges at Shinhan, Woori

The headquarters of Shinhan Bank and Woori Bank in Seoul / YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungShinhan Bank and Woori Bank are in the hot seat after it turned out that some of their suspicious foreign exchange trading has been linked with local cryptocurrency exchanges. Last month, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) launched an investigation into certain cases in which Woori's trade volume totaled 800 billion won ($69.5 million) and Shinhan's topped an estimated 1 trillion won, respectively.But the watchdog has recently found evidence that some of the capital flowed into domestic crypto exchanges, which raises the possibility of money laundering or illegal foreign exchange transactions.The FSS is still looking into the cases and investigating whether officials from the two lenders have violated any laws to prevent money laundering and illegal foreign currency transactions.The authority also does not dismiss the likelihood that those who conducted the transactions made ill use of foreign exchange transactions due to the so-called “kimchi premium.” The term refers to a gap between t

Jul 20, 2022By Lee Min-hyung

FSS finds evidence of suspicious crypto-related currency exchanges at Shinhan, Woori

KEPCO bonds rate distorting wider bond market: experts

KEPCO headquarters / Korea Times fileBy Yi Whan-wooKorea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) is moving faster on issuing bonds at higher coupon rates this year in a bid to cover snowballing losses, with the rate for the firm's five-year bond hitting a 13-year high of 4.48 percent last month.While the state-run electricity supplier is enjoying a sharp rise in bond sales, other companies find it tough to keep up with KEPCO's coupon rates and accordingly struggle in issuing corporate bonds to raise money.KEPCO bonds are also popular because the government guarantees recurring interest payments and return of the principal at the date of maturity. Market observers warn that KEPCO being overly popular in the bond market can disrupt financing of pandemic-disrupted enterprises at a time when the key interest rate is being hiked rapidly over inflation and taking out bank loans is becoming increasingly expensive.“The increase in a corporate bond's coupon rate makes sense in general because the rate is influenced by the policy rate,” a source said. “But even so, the coupon rates of K

Jul 20, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

KEPCO bonds rate distorting wider bond market: experts

Hana Bank named best lender in service quality for 7 years straight

Hana Bank CEO Park Sung-ho, right, holds a plaque with Korea Management Association Consulting (KMAC) President Han Soo-hee at the bank's head office in Seoul. Courtesy of Hana BankBy Yoon Ja-youngHana Bank has been selected as the best lender in the country in terms of customer contact in this year's Korean Service Quality Index released by Korea Management Association Consulting (KMAC), the bank announced Wednesday. It has been in the top spot for seven consecutive years.The annual index aims at objectively measuring the quality of corporate services as through customers' eyes. Its service assessment team evaluates service quality of 135 companies and institutions in 34 industries by visiting them in a “mystery survey” format. In this year's index, Hana was evaluated especially highly in the way staff greet customers and listen to their needs, politeness, enthusiasm and how they explain services to customers. The bank has been operating a range of programs to satisfy customer needs, including a seniors' advisory program to better serve older customers who are often left

Jul 20, 2022

Hana Bank named best lender in service quality for 7 years straight

Duty free shopping stocks soar as gov't considers raising duty free limit

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkFollowing Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho's remark on Sunday that the government is considering raising the duty free limit for travelers when shopping, local duty free businesses' stocks soared on Monday's trading session.The share price of Global Tax Free finished at 2,590 won ($1.97), a 9.05 percent increase, at Monday's closing. The firm's stock trade volume stood at over 2.69 million shares, which is 56 times more than the previous trading session, showing investors' optimistic anticipation over the stock's future performance. Hotel Shilla, which owns duty free branches, also saw its stock price increase 2.81 percent at Monday's closing. The stock price of Shinsegae International, which has its own duty free business, closed at 29,550 won, a 3.32 percent increase. Hyundai Department Store's stock price also rose by 2.38 percent for the same reason. JTC, which operates a duty free business for foreign tourists, also finished at 2,625 won, a 2.74 percent jump from the previous trading session. Finance Minister Choo said while attending the G20 Finance

Jul 18, 2022By Anna J. Park

Duty free shopping stocks soar as gov't considers raising duty free limit

KakaoBank wins best digital bank award

KakaoBank's head office in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province / Courtesy of KakaoBankBy Lee Min-hyungKakaoBank has won a best digital bank award from an overseas finance magazine.The mobile bank received Asia's Best Digital Bank award from Euromoney Awards for Excellence.This is the first time that a Korean internet-only bank has won the award since the magazine established the category in 2016.Euromoney spoke highly of KakaoBank's rapid earnings growth and its huge market dominance here. The mobile bank achieved a turnaround in 2019, about two years after its establishment.The lender is a leading mobile bank in Korea with more than 18 million subscribers.KakaoBank had 204.1 billion won in net profit last year, up 79.7 percent from the previous year, on interest profit growth.The lender's growth is noteworthy. Its number of customers came in at 15.4 million as of the end of 2020, but soared to 18 million last year.In April, KakaoBank was also picked as the Best Bank in Korea by Forbes.KakaoBank is widening its customer base not just among the young generation of consumers, but also among olde

Jul 18, 2022By Lee Min-hyung

Financial firms vow to enhance risk management

Woori Financial Group Chairman and CEO Son Tae-seung speaks during a workshop for the second half of the year at the group's headquarters in central Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of Woori Financial GroupBy Yi Whan-wooCompanies in the finance industry are mapping out strategies for the second half of the year, amid growing economic risks posed by soaring inflation and stagnant growth.Woori Financial Group, NongHyup Financial Group and Shinhan Bank each held their own workshops, Friday, with the leader of each firm addressing the need for enhanced risk management.The three workshops followed a meeting hosted by KB Financial Group in early July when its Chairman and CEO Yoon Jong-kyoo underlined the importance of consulting services for small businesses as a part of efforts to better safeguard clients' assets.Speaking at the workshop held at the firm's headquarters in central Seoul and broadcast live on YouTube, Woori Financial Group Chairman and CEO Son Tae-seung said risk management, including self-regulatory control, is critical in overcoming the economic crisis.The workshop was attended b

Jul 17, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Financial firms vow to enhance risk management

New KDB chief reshuffles executives following disputed appointment

A Korea Development Bank (KDB) flag stands at the main gate of the state-run lender's headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, in this photo taken in 2016. Korea Times fileBy Yi Whan-wooThe newly-appointed head of Korea Development Bank (KDB) carried out the first personnel reshuffle since he took office last month, in what is seen as a bid to strengthen his grip over the state-run lender amid strong opposition from unionized workers.According to sources familiar with the matter, Sunday, KDB Chairman Kang Seog-hoon replaced some executives in the reshuffle that took place, Friday.“The size of the reshuffle was as usual in previous years,” a source said.The latest reshuffle came amid strong protest from KDB union members that has continued for more than a month protesting Kang's appointment.Unionized workers have opposed the selection of Kang, a former university professor who was President Yoon Suk-yeol's economic advisor. The union members claim Kang's selection was a “parachute appointment” to implement the president's controversial pledge to move KDB's headquarters

Jul 17, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

New KDB chief reshuffles executives following disputed appointment

Top financial regulator with CEOs of foreign financial firms

Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Bok-hyun, center, poses with the CEOs of foreign financial institutions operating in Korea at a meeting held in Yeouido, Seoul, Friday. At the meeting, Lee stressed that the regulator will work to improve financial regulations to suit global standards and enhance the competitiveness of the financial industry. At a media briefing that followed the meeting, Lee also said that the regulator puts first priority in vitalizing the market and introducing efficient competition, instead of intervening in management affairs. Yonhap

Jul 15, 2022By Yoon Ja-young

Top financial regulator with CEOs of foreign financial firms

Hana relaunches women's leadership program after 2021 success

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, standing in the center, poses with participants of the second Hana Waves in-house program to foster women's leadership at the group's headquarters in central Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of Hana Financial GroupBy Yi Whan-wooHana Financial Group has begun its second Hana Waves in-house program aimed at fostering women's leadership following the success of the first program in June 2021, the banking group said Thursday. The 2022 program, which runs until the end of the year, will include group mentoring, development of work skills at higher positions, online MBA classes and presentations on business strategies.A total of 36 mid-level managers from the banking group's entire affiliates were selected for the program after being recommended by their respective CEOs.The 2021 program had 34 participants, with four of them being promoted as executives after completing the courses.“Women's competitiveness in the workplace can be characterized as a motherly heart that is strong but at the same time soft and caring,” Hana Financial Group Cha

Jul 14, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Banking & Finance