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Will Apple Card be available in Korea?

Apple Pay Vice President Jennifer Bailey speaks about Apple Card at the Steve Jobs Theater in California in this March 25 file photo. / AP-YonhapBy Park Jae-hyukApple Card, a virtual credit card the tech firm released in the United States, Aug. 20, has drawn attention from Korean iPhone users, who have been marginalized from mobile payment systems using other smartphone brands.Through its partnership with Goldman Sachs and Mastercard, Apple's new credit card has no annual, over-limit, late or foreign exchange fees.Its unique design also catches the eyes of users, as it has no card number, CVV security code, expiration date or signature.The white-and-titanium card only has the card holder's name, a chip, a magnetic strip and the Apple logo on it.Because of the distinctive features, Korean Apple customers have been eager for the company to release the credit card here, although the company has yet to come up with any plans to offer the card outside the U.S.News that Apple applied for trademark registration of Apple Card in Korea raised their hopes.The release of Apple Card, however, is

Aug 28, 2019By Park Jae-hyuk
Will Apple Card be available in Korea?

Korean banks may fall victim to US-China trade feud

A man stands in front of automated teller machines near the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul in this file photo. Global credit ratings agencies say Korean banks may suffer from the U.S.-China trade war. YonhapBy Park Jae-hyukThe intensifying trade tensions between the United States and China will likely have a negative impact on Korea's banking industry by hurting their asset quality and profitability, according to global credit ratings agencies, Wednesday.They said the nation's banks may face downward pressure on their credit profiles, because a possible Chinese slowdown ― mainly caused by the planned U.S. tariffs ― would have knock-on effects on other Asia-Pacific economies, including Korea.“Our economic model suggests Korea's economy would slow by 2 percentage points in 2020 in this scenario, which would push it very close to recession, and there would be little recovery in the following year,” Dan Martin, regional credit officer at Fitch Ratings' credit policy group, told The Korea Times.“That would create asset quality pressures which would be str

Aug 28, 2019By Park Jae-hyuk
Korean banks may fall victim to US-China trade feud

ORIX drop plan to sell Korean savings bank unit amid trade feuds

By Park Jae-hyukORIX, a Japanese financial services group, has scrapped its plan to sell OSB Savings Bank here, amid escalating tension between Korea and Japan.According to the savings bank, Tuesday, its largest shareholder decided not to sell the Korean subsidiary, considering the current economic conditions here and overseas.ORIX has been the largest shareholder of OSB since it acquired a 99.91 percent stake in PUREUN2 Mutual Savings Bank in Korea in 2010.In 2013, it sold a 23 percent stake in OSB to the U.S. private equity firm Olympus Capital.The two major shareholders of OSB have been looking for a buyer since they hired Samsung Securities as a lead manager in April.However, they reportedly failed to find a company offering a price they want.Observers said potential buyers offered lower prices, citing the growing anti-Japan sentiment among Korean customers.OSB said its recent decision was unrelated to the dispute between the two countries.

Aug 28, 2019By Park Jae-hyuk
ORIX drop plan to sell Korean savings bank unit amid trade feuds

KSD chief vows successful launch of e-securities system

Korea Securities Depository (KSD) CEO Lee Byung-rhae speaks at a press meeting on Yeouido, Seoul, Aug. 27. Courtesy of KSDBy Lee Kyung-min Korea Securities Depository (KSD) CEO Lee Byung-rhae said Tuesday that he will ensure an effective and safe implementation of an electronic securities (e-securities) system before his three-year term ends in December 2019.“We established a taskforce in August 2016 and came up with a roadmap for the full implementation of the system in September 2019," Lee said at a press meeting on Yeouido, Seoul, Aug. 27. "We will make sure the system will run fully without failures, a very attainable goal following trial runs over the past few months,” he added. Under the system scheduled to begin Sept. 16, securities certificates of shares and bonds will no longer be issued in physical form, thereby recording buyers' subsequent rights on an electronic register. This will allow investors to acquire, transfer and exercise the rights electronically. As of Aug. 23, 99.4 percent of the stocks listed on the local bourse have been recorded on an electronic

Aug 27, 2019By Lee Kyung-min
KSD chief vows successful launch of e-securities system

ABL launches dollar-denominated pension insurance

ABL Life launched a dollar-denominated pension insurance, through which subscribers pay premiums and receive claims in dollars. / Courtesy of ABL LifeBy Kim Bo-eunABL Life launched a dollar-denominated pension insurance plan, on the back of the popularity of such products as the dollar appreciates against the won. Subscribers to the single-premium product can accumulate payout through a fixed interest rate for a period of five or 10 years. The interest rate is fixed when the subscriber signs up for the product.The five-year product's interest rate is 2.11 percent, and the 10-year product, 2.66 percent, as of August.The product, based on a monthly premium, applies a credited interest rate of 2.67 percent, with a minimum guarantee rate of 1.5 percent for below 10 years and 0.5 percent for over 10 years.Subscribers can get bonuses ― a certain percentage of the premium ― if they complete paying premiums or maintain their contracts for extended periods.Monthly premium product subscribers can get 2 percent of the premium they have paid at the time they have completed paying.Single premium

Aug 27, 2019By Kim Bo-eun

Indonesia not 'land of opportunity' for Korean card issuers

Then Shinhan Card CEO Wi Sung-ho, third from left, poses with Indomobil CEO Jusak Kertowidjojo, third from right, during a launch ceremony of Shinhan Indo Finance in Jakarta, Indonesia, in this December 2015 file photo. Courtesy of Shinhan CardBy Park Jae-hyukKorean card firms are struggling to stay afloat in the Indonesian market, where they entered in 2015 under the guidance of their former CEOs, according to industry officials, Monday.Unlike their subsidiaries in other Southeast Asian countries, their Indonesian entities have faced difficulties in generating profits, due to Indonesian government regulations and its people not being familiar with credit card usage.Shinhan Indo Finance, for example, suffered a 1.64 billion won ($1.3 million) loss during the first half of 2019.Shinhan Card's Indonesian subsidiary has seen only a growing deficit since it was established in December 2015 as a joint venture between Shinhan Financial Group's card issuing unit and Indonesian conglomerate Salim Group's carmaker unit Indomobil.Shinhan Card holds a 50 percent plus one share in the joint vent

Aug 27, 2019By Park Jae-hyuk
Indonesia not 'land of opportunity' for Korean card issuers

Kyobo reports singular performance amid downturn

Life insurers' net profit dives 32% in H1 By Lee Kyung-min Kyobo Life Insurance posted 481.9 billion won ($394 million) in net profit in the first six months of 2019, up 15.8 percent from a year earlier, outshining its big-name competitors including Samsung and Hanwha, data showed Monday. According to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), Kyobo, among the top three life insurers, was the only one that posted a year-on-year increase in net profit. Samsung Life Insurance and Hanwha Life Insurance saw their year-on-year net profits drop 47.7 percent and 61.8 percent, respectively. Kyobo's outstanding performance was attributed to its differentiated asset management strategy. In late 2017, it turned its “held-to-maturity securities” worth 29.7 trillion won into “available-for-sales securities” in the belief that interest rates would decrease.This is in stark contrast to the fact that its rivals, including Samsung and Hanwha, preferred held-to-maturity securities as they bet on interest rate increases. For example, in 2017, Hanwha switched over 30 trillion won

Aug 26, 2019By Lee Kyung-min
Kyobo reports singular performance amid downturn
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