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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Amid Bitcoin craze, NH, K bank facing quandary over tie-ups with crypto exchanges

Corporate logos of NongHyup and K bank / Courtesy of each firmMeanwhile, Shinhan to extend ties with local crypto exchangeBy Lee Min-hyungAfter Bitcoin reached a record high, local banks and asset management companies are unexpectedly busy increasing their exposure to cryptocurrencies, with the country's financial regulators poised to step in with forthcoming new rules.The general opinion is that crypto assets are quite promising on multiple fronts, in terms of their usage and applicable areas, with a lot of investment banks, including Goldman Sachs, studying how they could be used. However, South Korea has been maintaining the hawkish stance toward cryptocurrencies that holding crypto assets will pose grave risks for banks, general consumers and even investment banks.That stance is pushing NongHyup (NH) Bank and K bank to face a growing quandary over whether they should extend their contracts with cryptocurrency exchange operators. So far this year, the two local lenders were supposed to keep issuing real-name accounts for their exchange partners. Real-name accounts are needed for i

May 25, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Amid Bitcoin craze, NH, K bank facing quandary over tie-ups with crypto exchanges
  • 1 in 4 college students investing in cryptocurrency

SC Bank strengthens retirement planning, 'Wealth Care' services

Standard Chartered Bank (SC Bank) Korea's banking application newly offers various retirement planning services. Courtesy of SC Bank KoreaBy Anna J. ParkAiming to target the country's increasing number of senior citizens, Standard Chartered (SC) Bank Korea has rolled out a mobile-based retirement planning service.Customers can now easily turn on SC Bank's mobile application, without the need for in-person visits at bank branches to receive retirement-specific consultations from experts. The mobile app offers not only an overview of the bank customers' expected retirement timeline and current financial status but also the necessary amount of money for their retirement goals while providing them with various investment means. Customers can also browse the expected amount of monthly pension payouts as well as the accumulated amount of pension premiums paid so far to the National Pension Service, allowing them to plan meticulously for retirement. “Given the prolonged life expectancy and the low growth rate, retirement planning is becoming ever-more important, especially in terms of

May 24, 2021By Anna J. Park
SC Bank strengthens retirement planning, 'Wealth Care' services

Banks reporting dismal earnings in Myanmar

Protesters hold the Myanmar Student Union flag during a demonstration against the military coup in Mandalay on May 17. AFP-Yonhap By Lee Min-hyungKorean banks have reported dismal earnings in Myanmar, a widely-expected result in the wake of the country's widening chaos amid the military take over and massive crackdown on its people who oppose the junta, with the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) Bank Myanmar hit hardest by the brutal violence there. The lender opened its office Jan. 21, but failed to engage in normal activities amid the turmoil that the military is wreaking on the population. The bank reported a net loss of 807 million won ($715,000) for the first three months this year.Most other lenders have not yet released specific earnings for the first quarter, but they are expected to have generated disappointing profits, as the internal conflict continues to escalate at a worrying level ― no Korean banks have resumed normal business operations so far.KB Kookmin

May 21, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Banks reporting dismal earnings in Myanmar

Citibank Korea may initiate plan B for partial sale of retail banking

Citibank's logo is seen at Citibank Korea's head office in Seoul, on April 27, when the lender held its first board meeting to discuss an exit strategy to pull out of its retail banking business here. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungCitibank Korea CEO Yoo Myung-soonCitibank might adjust its “exit strategy” from Korea by selling only a part of its consumer banking operations here, according to domestic banking industry sources. The projection comes as the U.S. lender's planned sale of its Korean retail banking business as a whole remains in the air. Citibank Korea is scheduled to hold a second board meeting on June 3 to discuss details of its ongoing efforts to sell its retail banking operation. The lender decided earlier to stop operating its retail banking service here due to weakened competitiveness compared to rivals.Since the announcement, the lender has placed top priority on the sale of the division as a whole. Citibank Korea is accepting letters of intent to strike a “one-shot big deal” and remains mum over which investors have voiced interest in acquiring the re

May 20, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Citibank Korea may initiate plan B for partial sale of retail banking

Large-scale lawsuits set to test Mirae Asset's capacity

Mirae Asset Securities headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Mirae Asset SecuritiesBy Park Jae-hyukMarket insiders' attention is focused on whether Mirae Asset Securities will win the two forthcoming large-scale lawsuits involving its foundered alternative investments, as its asset management affiliate defeated China's Anbang Insurance Group last year in litigation over a canceled acquisition of luxury hotels worth $5.8 billion won in the United States.Mirae Asset will face a 90 billion won lawsuit alongside NH Investment & Securities later this month from multiple institutional investors that used the securities firms to invest in the Drew Las Vegas construction project, which ultimately resulted in up to 300 billion won ($265 million) in losses to Korean individual and institutional investors earlier this year.The institutional investors are alleging Mirae Asset and other securities firms, which had organized a consortium in 2018 for making mezzanine and equity investments in the project, conducted mis-selling as they failed to inform investors of certain risks.Foreign attorney L

May 20, 2021By Park Jae-hyuk
Large-scale lawsuits set to test Mirae Asset's capacity

Banking industry moving to curb crypto craze

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Min-hyungThe nation's banking industry is moving to curb the cryptocurrency craze by adopting a series of restrictive measures targeting foreigners.Starting May 21, KB Kookmin Bank will block foreigners and non-Korean residents from transferring more than $10,000 (11.29 million won) to other countries in one month. This is a toughened measure from its earlier decision that placed the upper limit on daily overseas remittance at $10,000.The restriction came amid escalating concerns over the speculative nature of digital currencies, with many foreign investors seeking to generate gains by taking advantage of bitcoin arbitrage.The strategy is more widely known as the “kimchi premium” here through which a growing number of foreign investors buy cryptocurrencies in non-Korea-based exchanges and sell them in Korea where the price of bitcoin is relatively higher than in other markets.Korean banks are expected to keep introducing more restrictive measures against such speculative cryptocurrency transactions.Other major banks ― such as Shinhan, Woori and NongH

May 19, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Banking industry moving to curb crypto craze
  • Bitcoin plunges: A bust or a buy?

NongHyup helps farmers

NongHyup Bank Deputy President Lee Soo-kyung, bottom row fifth from left, poses for a group photo with employees before starting volunteer work at a rural village in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday. They participated in a series of activities such as weeding to help out the farmers and villagers there. Courtesy of NongHyup Bank

May 18, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
NongHyup helps farmers

Kakao Bank reports earnings growth, widens loan portfolio

By Lee Min-hyungKakao Bank achieved record earnings in the first quarter of 2021 by generating a net profit of 46.7 billion won ($41.24 million), up 152 percent from last year, on stable growth of its interest margin.The stellar earnings performance has raised hopes of a successful initial public offering (IPO) slated for the latter half of this year. The internet-only lender's pre-IPO valuation is about 33 trillion won, exceeding the market capitalization of other major commercial banking groups here.In a recent regulatory filing, the company said its solid growth was driven by a rise in interest and commission profits. The firm's net interest profit came in at 129.6 billion won in the first quarter. As of the end of March, Kakao Bank's net interest margin (NIM) also reached 1.87 percent. The NIM is a key barometer of a bank's profitability.“We were able to report stable growth in the first quarter, as the number of our users were on the rise and our platform business reported solid growth,” an official at the mobile lender said.The number of Kakao Bank users exceeded 16

May 18, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Kakao Bank reports earnings growth, widens loan portfolio

Standard Chartered poised to slash offices in Korea

Standard Chartered Bank Korea's headquarters in Seoul / YonhapSC Bank Korea denies any immediate plans to shut down branches hereBy Lee Min-hyungStandard Chartered Bank Korea CEO Park Jong-bokStandard Chartered (SC) Bank Korea is facing mounting pressure to reduce the number of its sales offices here amid its mother group's decision to close down half of its branches, mostly in Asia. The London-based international banking group recently unveiled the plan to cut its 776 branches globally down to around 400.Although the group's profit structure is heavily reliant on Asia, the Korean subsidiary will nonetheless likely be a primary target for SC's global drive to close a number of offices. SC Bank Korea runs 199 sales offices nationwide, and the company is one of the major profit sources for the group.Even if no specific plans have been fixed as to how many offices in Korea will be shut down or restructured, the lender has no choice but to downsize retail banking amid the rise of digital banking, at a time when more people than ever are making online transactions.SC Bank Korea is one of

May 17, 2021By Lee Min-hyung
Standard Chartered poised to slash offices in Korea

Thinking outside the box

NongHyup Bank CEO Kwon Jun-hak stresses the importance of thinking outside the box at an orientation for new employees at the bank's headquarters in Seoul, May 14. Courtesy of NongHyup Bank

May 16, 2021By Lee Kyung-min
Thinking outside the box
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