Business - The Korea Times

Mirae Asset Daewoo to buy back W100 billion worth of own shares

By Kim Bo-eunMirae Asset Daewoo's headquarters in central Seoul / Courtesy of Mirae Asset DaewooMirae Asset Daewoo said Sunday it plans to buy back 100 billion won ($90 million) of its own shares as a means of boosting shareholder value.The brokerage said it will buy back 1,050 of its own shares by April 28. This comes after the brokerage bought back a total of 50 million shares amounting to 372.7 billion won on four occasions in 2020.Mirae Asset Daewoo's share price had remained lackluster in recent months. But the stock price received a boost on Dec. 1 when the brokerage won a U.S. court case against China's Anbang Insurance Group over Mirae pulling out of a $5.8 billion deal to buy U.S. hotels from the Chinese insurer. Mirae's share price hit a 52-week high of 11,100 won on Jan. 11, when the Financial Services Commission unveiled a list of firms which received approval to launch "MyData” business, which will enable them to receive credit information on their customers from conventional financial firms, letting customers access all of their financial information in one place.

Jan 31, 2021

Mirae Asset Daewoo to buy back W100 billion worth of own shares

Yulchon's reputation rests on 1.6 trillion won Indonesian lawsuit facing client KB

Bukopin Bank's main branch in Jakarta / Courtesy of KB Kookmin BankBy Park Jae-hyukYulchon, one of the largest law firms in Korea, has come under the spotlight after KB Kookmin Bank was embroiled in a 1.6 trillion won ($1.4 billion) lawsuit in Indonesia over its acquisition of Bukopin Bank, which had been completed last August in accordance with the Korean law firm's advice.The outcome of the latest litigation, which remains unclear at this moment, appears set to sway the reputation of Yulchon, which has aggressively helped Korean banks with cross-border acquisitions in the Southeast Asian country, including state-run Korea Development Bank's takeover of Tifa Finance last September.When KB Kookmin was trying to take over Bukopin last year, the law firm was known as a “hidden force” by plotting strategies for dealing with the Indonesian bank's largest shareholder, helping the Korean bank obtain a license from financial authorities in both countries, structuring the transaction, performing due diligence and drafting the purchase agreement.KB Financial Group's latest regulat

Jan 26, 2021By Park Jae-hyuk

Yulchon's reputation rests on 1.6 trillion won Indonesian lawsuit facing client KB

Commercial banks call profit-sharing 'unfair'

Getty Images BankBy Lee Min-hyungKorea's commercial banks have called the idea of big companies contributing funds to ease the financial burden of coronavirus-hit merchants “unfair,” saying the move would undermine the integrity of the capital market.The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) was the first to float the idea, with its chairman Lee Nak-yon suggesting that companies that generated profits last year should establish a joint fund with the government and provide financial support for the self-employed and small firms hit hard by the pandemic shock.Following this plan, the nation's financial companies are emerging as “targets” of the government's possible move as they reported a cumulative trillions of won in profits last year. The nation's top four banking groups ― KB, Shinhan, Hana and Woori ― are estimated to have generated around 11 trillion won in net profits in 2020.But major lenders seemed to have expressed unwillingness to back up the plan as they are private companies with obligations to their shareholders.“Most banks here can say for

Jan 25, 2021By Lee Min-hyung

Commercial banks call profit-sharing 'unfair'

Bank employees enjoy hefty bonuses

gettyimagesbankBy Lee Kyung-min Hana Bank CEO Ji Sung-kyooStaff at Korea's leading commercial lenders will enjoy hefty bonuses for last year due to the spike in demand for borrowing, thanks to a record-low interest rate and a combination of expansionary fiscal and monetary policies adjusted to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Criticism is expected to mount over “insensitive profit-sharing” since bonuses of up to 200 percent of their base wage come even though many intended beneficiaries of government emergency measures ― virus-hit small- and medium- enterprises (SMEs) ― are denied financing due to stringent lending requirements.The access to cheap money is instead granted largely to young, salaried workers, whose creditworthiness is higher compared to small business owners.Many 20- and 30-somethings have taken out mortgages or borrowed money to make stock investments, with the frenzy over the former driven by two dozen botched real estate policies that led to an over 80 percent spike in the median apartment price in Seoul over the past four years, according to data from the C

Jan 24, 2021By Lee Kyung-min

Tightening loan regulations drives market into further confusion

Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman Eun Sung-soo speaks during a briefing at the Government Complex in Seoul on Jan. 19. YonhapBy Lee Min-hyungHouseholds' fear is expected to escalate over the government's implementation of additional loan regulations. Experts argue this will keep distorting the loan market amid the leveraged investment boom in an era of ample liquidity.Households have for years shown a pattern of taking out excessive loans right after financial authorities announce plans to impose tougher loan restrictions.This year was no exception, with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) hinting at introducing a new non-collateral (credit) loan regulation in the name of stabilizing the housing market. Watchdogs view households' rising credit loan balance as a sign of overheating in the housing and stock markets.According to data from the nation's top five banks, their credit loan balance surged by 736.1 billion won in only two days from Jan. 19 when the FSC announced the regulation, under which households are forced to pay an equal amount of the principle of their cr

Jan 24, 2021By Lee Min-hyung

Tightening loan regulations drives market into further confusion

Financial group leaders, ruling DPK meet over Korea New Deal

From left, KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyu, Woori Financial Group Son Tae-seung and Kim Gwang-soo, the head of the Korea Federation of Banks (KFB) attend a meeting at KFB headquarters in central Seoul, Friday. / Yonhap By Anna J. ParkWhile expressing support for the government's five-year Korea New Deal initiative, major financial groups in Korea have urged the ruling party to deregulate the country's financial markets.Key members of the ruling party and the heads of Korea's five major financial groups ― KB, Shinhan, Woori, Hana and NH ― and other leaders of financial institutions met Friday to discuss ways to support President Moon Jae-in's Korean New Deal initiative aimed at stimulating economic growth and job creation through digital and green projects.Kim Gwang-soo, the head of the Korea Federation of Banks (KFB), told reporters after Friday's meeting that some of the deregulation requests made by financial groups to the ruling party included tax benef

Jan 22, 2021By Anna J. Park

Financial group leaders, ruling DPK meet over Korea New Deal

Shinhan kicks off big digital project worth W300 bil.

Shinhan Bank headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of Shinhan BankBy Lee Min-hyungShinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dongShinhan Bank said Thursday it has started on a “grand journey” for what it calls the NEXT digital banking project with an investment of 300 billion won ($272 million).The project is to enable customers to enjoy a seamless experience between mobile banking and offline services, the bank said. Shinhan will spend the 300 billion won over the next three-and-a-half years to renovate its digital banking systems, by improving user interfaces and the experience of its existing digital platforms.The move is seen as the lender's bid to lead the digital banking paradigm shift which is still in its infancy. The coronavirus outbreak paved the way for non-face-to-face transactions in 2020, and major financial firms are moving to cut their reliance on bricks-and-mortar branches and increase their digital capability to brace for the post-coronavirus world.“The future of the bank relies on whether we can achieve a successful digital transformation,” Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-

Jan 21, 2021By Lee Min-hyung

Shinhan kicks off big digital project worth W300 bil.

Will KB manage to achieve profit in Myanmar?

KB Kookmin Bank headquarters in Seoul's Yeouido district / Courtesy of KB Kookmin BankBy Lee Min-hyungKB Kookmin Bank opened its first subsidiary in Myanmar last week and all eyes are on whether the lender will be able to keep the Southeast Asian branch in the black in its first year despite lingering COVID-19 uncertainties.In December, KB won the license from the country's central bank to open ten branch offices. KB Financial Group identifies Myanmar as a strategic market possessing huge growth potential.The banking arm is not the first company to tap into the territory. KB Kookmin Card established an office in the city of Yangon in 2017.The lender set a target of generating operating profits there by the end of 2021. Considering initial investment costs, it is hard for any bank to report a surplus in a short period of time after tapping into overseas markets. On top of that, coronavirus-related uncertainties also pose a major hurdle for the lender.KB plans to focus on widening its corporate and housing finance there under partnerships with Korean and local firms. Even if the licens

Jan 20, 2021By Lee Min-hyung

Will KB manage to achieve profit in Myanmar?

Deloitte Anjin accountants indicted by prosecutors amid feud with Kyobo Life

Deloitte Anjin's logoBy Anna J. ParkFollowing a nine-month investigation, the Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office indicted three accountants at Deloitte Anjin earlier this week on charges of violating the country's Certified Accountant Act. The law requires chartered accountants to remain impartial and maintain good faith, while prohibiting them from receiving bribes and conspiring with others to generate unfair financial gains. Prosecutors launched their investigation in April last year after Kyobo Life Insurance accused the accounting firm as well as members of the insurer's investor consortium ―composed of Hong Kong-based Affinity Equity Partners, Baring Private Equity Asia, Singapore's GIO and IMM Private Equity ― of colluding to give the investors unfair benefits in calculating the insurer's fair market value. The insurer also filed a complaint against Deloitte Anjin with the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board early last year. The feud started after the investor consortium acquired a 24.01 percent stake in Kyobo Life back in 2012 for 1.2 trillion won ($970 mi

Jan 19, 2021By Anna J. Park

Deloitte Anjin accountants indicted by prosecutors amid feud with Kyobo Life

Suh chosen as sole CEO candidate for K bank

By Kim Yoo-chulHankook Tire & Technology Senior Vice President Suh Ho-sung has been chosen as the sole candidate to become the chief executive of K bank, the internet-only bank said, Monday.“The bank's CEO-selection committee recommended Suh as the sole CEO candidate to K bank's board committee. After shareholders' approval, Suh will officially take the top seat,” K bank said in a press release. If shareholders approve the recommendation, Suh will be the first outsider to take the top position at the bank since its establishment.Suh Ho-sungThe release added the selection-committee gave Suh extra credit for his hands-on experience with clients in the financial industry, which could help K bank win more investments from major investors. “K bank is hoping Suh will help the firm lift its overall corporate value and boost brand recognition,” the statement said.Suh earned an MBA at Carnegie Mellon University in the United States and previously worked for Hyundai Motor's financial services units ― Hyundai Card, Hyundai Motor Securities and Fubon Hyundai Life Insu

Jan 18, 2021By Kim Yoo-chul

Banking & Finance