Business - The Korea Times

Nearly half of Korea's public firms lose money in 2021

Korea Electric Power (KEPCO) / Korea Times file Nearly half of public companies in Korea lost money in 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic with the state-run power monopoly logging the biggest loss on soaring oil prices, data showed Tuesday.A total of 170 public companies and institutions, or 47 percent of 363 that disclosed their 2021 results, were in the red last year, according to the data posted on the state portal All Public Information in One (ALIO).The state utility Korea Electric Power (KEPCO) registered the largest operating loss of 5.8 trillion won ($4.54 billion) in the wake of high international crude prices.It was KEPCO's biggest operating loss ever and marked a sharp turnaround from a 4.1 trillion-won operating income in 2020 that stemmed from low oil costs.Hit hard by the COVID-19 outbreak, Incheon International Airport posted the second-biggest operating loss of 930 billion won, followed by the Korea Railroad with 888 billion won and the Korea Racing Aut

May 10, 2022

Nearly half of Korea's public firms lose money in 2021

Consulting business expected to enjoy another boom year

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkDespite growing uncertainty coupled with hostile macro factors, the country's management consulting business is forecast to continue expanding this year, with local corporations increasingly seeking strategic preparations for economic downturns. Market insiders say that the local consultancy business witnessed the highest demand for their advisory services during the past couple of years since the early 2000s, as corporations were busy looking for survival strategies during the pandemic. While there was growing demand for consultants' advisory services from local companies to adapt to the fast-changing market, the consultancy industry has had a limited recruit pool available. Top firms like McKinsey Korea, BCG and Bain & Company have each increased their hiring of consultants, but the number of experienced top-tier management consultants falls short of the increasing demand. The needs for strategic management advisory services have increased in alignment with the growth of the global M&A market last year. According to a report by Bain & Compa

May 10, 2022By Anna J. Park

Consulting business expected to enjoy another boom year

Hana Financial Investment eyeing takeover of Hana Bank's Hong Kong unit

Hana Financial Group's building in central Seoul / Courtesy of Hana Financial GroupHana Financial Investment said Monday that it was seeking to take over the Hong Kong subsidiary of its affiliate Hana Bank as part of efforts to tap into the Asian financial hub.Hana Financial Investment is considering a plan to purchase a 100 percent stake in KEB Hana Global Finance Ltd. for about $100 million, a company official said."We are mulling several options for the envisioned acquisition," the official said. "It is going through an internal decision-making process and nothing has been finalized yet."If the plan becomes a reality, KEB Hana Global Finance would be Hana Financial Investment's wholly owned subsidiary in the Chinese special administrative region.Hana Financial Investment has been ramping up efforts to make forays into overseas markets, especially the Asian financial hub of Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia with its high growth potential.In late April, the company signed a deal to purchase a 35 percent stake in Vietnam-based brokerage BIDV Securities for 142 billion won ($111 million),

May 9, 2022

Hana Financial Investment eyeing takeover of Hana Bank's Hong Kong unit

Shinhan Financial chairman discusses climate change with UK environment minister

Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung, second from right, poses with with U.K. Minister for the Pacific and the Environment Zac Goldsmith, second from left, and U.K. Ambassador to Korea Colin Crooks, left, during their meeting at the group's headquarters in central Seoul, May 6. The meeting took place on the occasion of Goldsmith's Korea visit for the World Forestry Congress held from May 2 to 6. Courtesy of Shinhan Financial GroupBy Yi Whan-wooShinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung met with U.K. Minister for the Pacific and the Environment Zac Goldsmith and discussed the role of financial services companies of the private sector in tackling climate change and protecting biodiversity, the company said Sunday. It said the meeting took place last week on the occasion of Goldsmith's attendance at the World Forestry Congress 2022 in Seoul. The congress is the world's largest forestry-related event, held every six years. The British minister was in charge of issues related to forest preservation when the U.K. hosted the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference, or COP26, i

May 8, 2022By Yi Whan-woo

Shinhan Financial chairman discusses climate change with UK environment minister

KakaoBank considers forging ties with crypto exchanges

The logo of KakaoBank is seen at its headquarters in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, in this file photo. Yonhap By Lee Min-hyung KakaoBank CEO Yun Ho-young KakaoBank is considering tapping into the cryptocurrency industry through a potential partnership with cyber money exchange operators here.The internet-only lender leaves open various possibilities before taking more concrete steps for its expansion into the new industry. The move reflects growing demand for cryptocurrency transactions here and abroad.The young and innovative identity of the company also increases the likelihood of its future ties with one of the nation's crypto exchanges, according to market watchers.“KakaoBank is positively reviewing plans on how we will be able to launch crypto-related services or businesses, as more customers identify crypto assets as a major financial investment a

May 7, 2022By Lee Min-hyung

KakaoBank considers forging ties with crypto exchanges

Local companies face difficulties in issuing dollar bonds

gettyimagesbankBy Anna J. ParkKorean companies' planned dollar-denominated bond sales are being canceled during the second quarter, reflecting the global bond market's growing anxiety and uncertainty over geopolitical threats as well as the U.S. Federal Reserve's quantitative tightening plans. Mirae Asset Securities was this year's first such case among local companies that had to withdraw plans of issuing dollar bonds late last month, due to worsening investor sentiment and market conditions.During the bond sale process, the Seoul-headquartered brokerage company suggested its final pricing guidance (FPG) of 155 basis points over three-year maturity Treasury securities for investors in Asia and Europe, following its initial pricing guidance (IPG) of 165 basis points. Yet, the company had to cancel the bond sales in the end, as some investors decided to back out amid market volatility. “An increased volatility over global interest rates as well as geopolitical concerns in Ukraine have both expanded market anxieties, intimidating investor sentiment. The company decided to delay t

May 5, 2022By Anna J. Park

Local companies face difficulties in issuing dollar bonds

Should Upbit return interest profits back to customers?

gettyimagesbank Legal loophole creates controversy surrounding money deposited in coin exchangesBy Anna J. ParkControversy is brewing surrounding Upbit, the country's largest cryptocurrency exchange, as criticism has arisen as to whether the firm should return interest rate profits that it gained from its huge number of customer deposits. According to the electronic disclosure system of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), won-denominated currency deposited in the country's four major coin exchanges ― Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit ― stood at over 7.6 trillion won ($6 billion) as of the end of last year. Over 76 percent of the money, or some 5.8 trillion won, is deposited in Upbit accounts, followed by 1.4 trillion won deposited in Bithumb, 278 billion won in Coinone and 70.7 billion won in Korbit. While the total amount of deposited money at the cryptocurrency exchanges have grown many times over the past year, there's no clear rule about the money deposite

May 5, 2022By Anna J. Park

Should Upbit return interest profits back to customers?

Hana Financial Group supports victims of child abuse

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, left, poses with Oh Joon, Chair of the Save the Children Korea Board, after making a donation to the NGO at the group's headquarters in downtown Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of Hana Financial GroupBy Yoon Ja-youngHana Financial Group made a donation ahead of Children's Day on May 5, to help child abuse victims. According to Hana, it donated 800 million won ($635,000) on Tuesday to Save the Children, an international NGO dedicated to protecting the rights of children. The donation will be spent for victims of child abuse, to expand medical support and strengthen aid services. This includes emergency support including intensive care and operation of cultural experience programs for the child abuse victims living in shelters, provision of long-term mental healthcare treatment and renovation of shelters, which all aim at supporting the victims to recover from trauma and grow up healthy and safe. Made as a part of Hana Power On Care, the financial group's support program for the underprivileged, the donation is especially meaningful as it marks 100

May 4, 2022

Hana Financial Group supports victims of child abuse

Woori Bank CEO apologizes for recent embezzlement case

Woori Bank CEO Lee Won-duk / Courtesy of Woori Financial Group By Anna J. ParkWoori Bank CEO Lee Won-duk apologized over the recent embezzlement of 61.4 billion won ($48.4 million) by a bank employee, adding that the bank will do its best to win back customer trust. “The bank will take every possible measure to cooperate with the authorities in its investigation to get to the bottom of the embezzlement case,” Lee told reporters in central Seoul on Tuesday, before attending a joint meeting with Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Jeong Eun-bo, along with 16 other bank chiefs.Yet he did not provide any further details about the case. “Currently, the police investigation and the FSS inspection are both underway,” he said. “It would be inappropriate to comment further on the case.”On Tuesday afternoon, FSS Governor Jeong met with CEOs from 17 local banks, including KB, Shinhan, Hana, NongHyup, Kakao and K among others, at the Korea Federation of Banks headquarte

May 3, 2022By Anna J. Park

Woori Bank CEO apologizes for recent embezzlement case

KakaoBank achieves solid earnings growth in Q1

KakaoBank logo / Courtesy of KakaoBankKakaoBank CEO stresses restructuring of loan portfolio, cooperation with cryptocurrency exchangesBy Anna J. ParkKakaoBank achieved substantial growth in the first quarter of this year, logging a quarterly net profit of 66.8 billion won ($52.8 million), which is up 43.2 percent year-on-year. The net profit growth was mainly attributed to robust sales of various online-only loan products as well as its platform business and commission fees.The bank achieved an operating profit of 88.4 billion won, up 63.8 percent year-on-year. The figure is also the highest quarterly profit ever for the bank, which opened in 2017. The mobile-based lender's innovative online-exclusive loan products have been one of the key reasons behind the solid quarterly growth. The bank's housing mortgage loan, which was launched in February, attracted younger customers in the first quarter. More than 110 billion won was extended to customers as of the end of March, just a month since the mortgage loan was launched. More than 13 trillion won worth of loans for home rent and jeon