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  • Tech & Science

    Tech leaders showcase technology at Quantum Korea 2026

    Leading technology companies and institutions showcased their latest quantum technology developments at Quantum Korea 2026, which opened on Thursday, as the government seeks to position Korea as a global leader in quantum technology through various policy initiatives. Hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT since 2023, Quantum Korea will run through Saturday. This year’s edition focuses on how quantum technologies are being implemented and used in actual settings. A total of 56 companies and research organizations from 12 countries, including SK Telecom and KT, participated in the event, displaying quantum computer models and showcasing technologies that use quantum-based encryption and other security solutions. The telecom companies focused on quantum security solutions, as advances in quantum computing are expected to increase the risk of existing encryption systems being compromised. The key concept in their exhibitions was quantum key distribution (QKD) technology. QKD sends encryption keys using the quantum states of photons. Because observing a photon changes its quantum state,

    2 MIN READBy Nam Hyun-woo
    Tech leaders showcase technology at Quantum Korea 2026
  • Banking & Finance

    Shinhan, Kiwoom face probe over JTBC bond sales amid default fallout

    2 MIN READBy Jun Ji-hye
    Shinhan, Kiwoom face probe over JTBC bond sales amid default fallout
  • Companies

    Korea expresses regret over US House committee’s 'lopsided' Coupang report

    2 MIN READBy Ko Dong-hwan
    Korea expresses regret over US House committee’s 'lopsided' Coupang report
  • Companies

    KEPCO rallies industry to commercialize direct current power systems

    2 MIN READBy Lee Kyung-min
    KEPCO rallies industry to commercialize direct current power systems
  • Companies

    BYD Korea looks to offset subsidy exclusion with PHEV sales

    2 MIN READBy Lee Min-hyung
    BYD Korea looks to offset subsidy exclusion with PHEV sales
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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.

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Banking & Finance

Samsung Fire & Marine showcases Korea's insurance potential as lead sponsor of KIIC

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance (SFMI) CEO Lee Mun-hwa expressed hopes that the Korea International Insurance Conference (KIIC), held this week, will serve as a vital platform to strengthen collaboration between domestic and global non-life insurers and unlock the full potential of Korea's insurance industry. As the lead sponsor of the event, SFMI is working closely with other key industry players to help establish KIIC as a shared, industry-led initiative — not a company-branded event, but a platform built by and for the insurance community in Korea and beyond. Launched for the first time last year, KIIC drew significant attention from the global insurance industry. This year, it returned on a larger scale and with more structured programming. The two-day conference, which began Wednesday at Inspire Entertainment Resort in Incheon, gathered around 900 professionals from 150 insurance and reinsurance companies across 23 countries, solidifying its status as a key international forum to discuss the present and future of the insurance sector. In an interview with The Korea Times, Lee said

Jun 5, 2025By Jun Ji-hye
Samsung Fire & Marine showcases Korea's insurance potential as lead sponsor of KIIC
Business

S. Korea's KHNP signs final nuclear plant contract with Czech Republic after court injunction lifted: report

Korea's state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) has signed a final contract to build a nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic, following the lifting of a court injunction that had blocked the deal, Reuters reported Wednesday. According to the report, Czech Prime Minister Petra Fiala confirmed the KHNP and the Czech state-controlled company Elektrarna Dukovany II (EDU II) signed the agreement after the Czech Supreme Administrative Court overturned an injunction that barred the signing of the final contract to build two new nuclear power units in Dukovany nuclear power plant. The KHNP earlier confirmed media reports that the injunction had been lifted, clearing a major hurdle for the multibillion-dollar project. The move came following EDU II's appeal last month against a local court decision to issue an injunction temporarily suspending the finalization of the estimated 26 trillion-won ($18.6 billion) deal at the request of French energy company EDF, a losing bidder in the tender process. The KHNP had initially planned to sign the final agreement with EDU II on May 7 to build

Jun 4, 2025By Yonhap
S. Korea's KHNP signs final nuclear plant contract with Czech Republic after court injunction lifted: report
Tech & Science

OpenAI CSO promises support for Lee's AI initiatives

OpenAI Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon has promised the company’s support on President Lee Jae-myung’s artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives, which will be the focal point of the new administration’s industrial policies. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) Wednesday, Kwon congratulated Lee on his election win and expressed the company’s intention to provide support for Lee’s AI policies. “Congrats to Lee on his election as President of the Republic of Korea,” he wrote both in English and Korean. “I met his team last week and was impressed by their vision for Korea to become a global AI leader and commitment to ensuring AI benefits all Koreans. Looking forward to supporting however we can.” Kwon and other officials from the U.S. AI giant visited Seoul on May 26 and met with members of the Democratic Party of Korea’s special committee on digital affairs. During the meeting, Lim Moon-young, the committee’s head, stressed Lee’s initiative to make Korea “a global AI powerhouse where all citizens can benefit from AI,” and their plan to set up a national AI fund w

Jun 4, 2025By Nam Hyun-woo
OpenAI CSO promises support for Lee's AI initiatives
Companies

Foreign biz community expects stronger economic ties under new leadership

The election of President Lee Jae-myung is raising hopes Wednesday among foreign businesspeople in Korea that the new administration will strengthen economic ties with their home countries. As Lee ended a monthslong government leadership vacuum, foreign business associations congratulated him on his victory, promising to provide support for the success of his new administration. "We look forward to building on the strong foundation of bilateral economic cooperation and to working closely with the new administration to foster mutual growth, innovation and opportunity for our business communities," the Korean-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a statement. The second-largest foreign chamber of commerce in Korea has continuously called for a reliable and transparent regulatory framework, consistent enforcement of the rule of law and policies that actively encourage foreign investment. During an interview with The Korea Times in April, CEO Marie Antonia von Schonburg urged Korea and Germany to reaffirm their commitment to multilateralism and a rules-based global trade system. "In

Jun 4, 2025By Park Jae-hyuk
Foreign biz community expects stronger economic ties under new leadership
Companies

Stellantis Korea hit by excessive sales intervention amid falling revenue

Stellantis Korea was ordered Wednesday to rectify its inadequate sales intervention on its retail stores, taking another hit from its steep sales fall here, the antitrust watchdog said. According to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC), a sanction was imposed on the local subsidiary of the global carmaker for violating fair trade rules by coercing its retail stores into submitting confidential sales data. Stellantis Korea sells vehicles from two major overseas auto brands — Jeep and Peugeot. The FTC investigation found that the carmaker had demanded that its retail stores provide documents containing their specific revenue data. Unless the carmaker’s affiliated retail stores submitted them by the deadline, Stellantis Korea cut incentives by 0.2 percent from employees in the stores. The submitted data is seen as confidential, so the stores do not necessarily have to provide them, according to the antitrust watchdog. “Stellantis Korea abused its power to intervene in sales activities from its retail stores,” an FTC official said. The authority said any corporate headquarters should protec

Jun 4, 2025By Lee Min-hyung
Stellantis Korea hit by excessive sales intervention amid falling revenue
Banking & Finance

Banks likely to face pressure from new president to write off debts, reduce interest margins

Commercial lenders are expected to face growing pressure to extend loan maturities or write them off entirely, under President Lee Jae-myung’s initiative to support small businesses and the self-employed hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, market watchers said Wednesday. Also in focus is whether lenders will lower discretionary premiums — or add-ons — a much-criticized method of protecting profit margins even after their borrowing costs fell following a recent Bank of Korea rate cut. Banks say that so-called "mutual growth" financial aid packages are widely expected, amid criticism that their record profits come almost entirely from interest income — not because of significant innovation efforts or broader growth strategies. But the lenders argue that the government should stop framing them as profiteers and ease and scrap excessive regulations that hinder their business expansions, digital drives and cryptocurrency asset services. “It’s an extremely sensitive issue, given the transition to the new administration,” a banking industry official said, adding that many commercial len

Jun 4, 2025By Lee Kyung-min
Banks likely to face pressure from new president to write off debts, reduce interest margins
Companies

Lee urged not to repeat past eco-mobility failures

President Lee Jae-myung should prevent the recurrence of botched eco-friendly mobility policies pushed by former administrations by mapping out more concrete long-term strategies, experts and industry officials said Wednesday. Lee took office tasked with the revival of the nation’s key industries, as they are at risk of losing growth momentum here and abroad amid unfavorable economic circumstances and increasing trade pressure from the United States. The automobile sector is particularly vulnerable to these risk factors, with most carmakers reporting a drastic drop in auto sales. The industry is in dire need of policy support from the new administration to tackle an escalating set of uncertainties. Auto experts and industry watchers said the government should learn from past mistakes in eco-friendly policies. Lee pledged to make the market share for electric vehicles (EVs) exceed 50 percent by 2030, in line with a global shift towards more eco-friendly forms of mobility. However, experts argued the pledge is unfeasible during his five-year tenure, as infrastructure for the spread of EV

Jun 4, 2025By Lee Min-hyung
Lee urged not to repeat past eco-mobility failures
Companies

KAI president offers to resign on Day 1 of Lee administration

Kang Goo-young, CEO of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), expressed his intention to resign on Wednesday, the same day President Lee Jae-myung was inaugurated. According to the nation’s sole aircraft manufacturer, Kang informed the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) — KAI’s largest shareholder — that he would step down once a successor is appointed. Given that the government holds more than a 35 percent stake in KAI and the defense industry is particularly sensitive to shifts in government policy, it has been customary for the company’s top executive to be replaced with each change of administration. Kang, 66, is the first former Air Force pilot to serve as CEO in KAI’s history. His three-year term is set to end in September. A graduate of the Republic of Korea Air Force Academy, Kang previously served as commander of the Fifth Air Mobility Wing and as deputy chief of staff of the Air Force. He also played a key role in the development of homegrown jet trainers, including the KT-1 basic training aircraft and the T-50 supersonic advanced trainer. During the 2022 preside

Jun 4, 2025By Nam Hyun-woo
KAI president offers to resign on Day 1 of Lee administration
Companies

Commercial Act revision by new gov't to test businesses

With the launch of the Lee Jae-myung administration, the president’s proposal to revise the Commercial Act is emerging as a new challenge for businesses in Korea. The plan aims to boost stock prices but could also expose companies to increased pressure from activist shareholders seeking to influence corporate decision-making. During a YouTube livestream on Monday, a day before the presidential election, Lee said he will handle the revision “within two to three weeks after taking office.” “Since the revision has already passed the National Assembly once, it should be reinforced and made stronger,” he said. “The largest shareholders are abusing their control over companies and taking the benefits through spin-offs and relistings. There’s no other country that allows this. We can stop it through revisions to the Commercial Act.” The revision Lee was referring to was passed in the National Assembly on March 13 with the unilateral endorsement of Lee's party, the Democratic Party of Korea, which holds a majority. It was vetoed by then-acting President Han Duck-soo on April 1,

Jun 4, 2025By Nam Hyun-woo
Commercial Act revision by new gov't to test businesses
Tech & Science

Kakao offers data security training for small businesses

Kakao held an online data security training for small and medium-sized enterprises Wednesday in collaboration with the Personal Information Protection Commission and the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) to improve personal data protection. Since 2022, the tech giant and KISA have been offering data security education sessions for Kakao’s partnering entities and small businesses to strengthen their handling of personal information. Along with Kakao’s partnering businesses, the sessions are also open to anyone who is interested in data privacy. “We’ve prepared this training to provide practical support so that our partners and small businesses can handle personal data securely,” the company said in a release. “We will continue offering appropriate education and support to help small businesses understand privacy regulations and operate safely.” The session invited Lee Soo-hyun, a senior researcher from KISA, to discuss topics on personal data breach cases, key precautions for handling personal information within Kakao and steps to take in cases of a data breach. This y

Jun 4, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Kakao offers data security training for small businesses
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