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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.

Honorary doctorate

Iceland’s President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, right, poses with Kookmin University President Yu Ji-soo after receiving an honorary doctorate in politics at the school’s campus in Seoul, Monday. The university said it has recognized Grimsson’s contribution to promoting friendly international relations and raising awareness about climate change and issues facing the Arctic. / Courtesy of Kookmin University

Nov 9, 2015

Wealth management emerging as growth driver for banks

By Choi Si-youngAdvances in technology have generated a more sophisticated approach to examine the patterns of information, simple or complex. Understanding such “big data” or gigantic data sets has enriched daily lives from preventing diseases to combatting crimes. Financial sectors remain no exception. Banks now better understand their clients’ financial motives and interests through reviewing their consuming as well as saving habits. Traditionally, Korean banks primarily profit from differing rates in lending and borrowing.  However, banks and customers will enjoy more wealth with more aggressive practices, for from small to large, they altogether share the same interests in downsizing expenditures and multiplying savings. Administering wealth management for larger segments of people and establishing a new online “platform”, erected by banks, where “peers” or a group of “clients” conduct their financing will deliver a new source of revenue. Initiated years ago in the name of “private banking”, banks h

Nov 9, 2015
Wealth management emerging as growth driver for banks

Integration key to survival in fintech market for banks

By Kim Hyeong-in Brunch, voluntourism and webisode. There is one common thing among these words. They are newly listed compound words in the Oxford English dictionary as the need for explaining them has arisen. Banks are no exception.Fintech, the compound word of finance and technology, has become a common way of payment in many developed countries such as the UK and US. People want faster, lighter and more convenient method to pay for anything.They don’t want to waste time waiting for a cashier to calculate their change, nor fill their wallets with ‘heavy’ coins. Simply put, they feel inconvenient to have their wallets in their back pockets. As the word Fintech itself is the integration of two different words, banks have no choice but to ‘integrate’ to survive in this new and fierce market.In the internet bank market, which is most likely to be a battlefield for banks to maintain their presence in transition to Fintech, they alone cannot stand as main actors. This is because banks cannot be the largest stakeholders of any internet bank in Korea due

Nov 9, 2015
Integration key to survival in fintech market for banks

Banks urged to embrace new technology to move forward

By Lee Dong-min Expounding upon South Korea's remarkable economic growth that pushed its status from a poor post-war country to one of the Asian Tigers now serves as a cliché; the rags to riches story of the country has been one recounted too often.In the new era where South Korea has already reached into the atmosphere of stability, the importance of the service sector beyond that of the primary and secondary sectors is rising. From that aspect, the role that South Korean banks must play in order to keep up the stability is indeed heavy.Contrary to the importance of such a role, South Korean banks have been lagging behind the past few years. In the second quarter of 2012, the combined profit of South Korean banks 59 percent from a year earlier. In a 2013 survey by The Banker, the competitiveness of Korean banks was ranked 83rd out of 93 nations.Moreover, the current benchmark interest rate set by the central bank is at a low 1.5%, further restricting future profit prospects of Korean banks. To ensure the financial health of Korean banks and raise their future competitive

Nov 9, 2015
Banks urged to embrace new technology to move forward

Regulation, inefficiency, lack of expertise are hurdles for banks

By Princewill Udom Customers and clients are the mainstay of the Korean banks. This means that there is a direct correlation between the performance of the banks and the confidence of the users in the banks.Sadly, there is a crisis of confidence between the banks and the people whom they serve. The bond of trust between the banks and their customers is apparently weakening and this scenario may become pervasive.The users’ waning enthusiasm for the banks may indicate the need for a new model of banking practices. The evidence of sagging confidence in the banks includes growing wariness by both the banks and their users, looming economic downturn and possible political fallouts.To be sure, it would be unfair and misguided to attribute culpability to the banks only, albeit the banks have a critical role to play. This essay identifies three important instruments available for use by the banks to reinvent themselves. These are banking regulations, efficiency gains and specialization.Firstly, the proliferation of banking regulations, although enacted in good faith, is probably h

Nov 9, 2015
Regulation, inefficiency, lack of expertise are hurdles for banks

SeoulTech appoints president

Kim Jong-hoBy Park Jin-haiKim Jong-ho has been appointed president of Seoul National University of Science and Technology (SeoulTech), the university said Monday.Kim, a professor of mechanical systems and design engineering at SeoulTech, will serve his four-year tenure from Monday, succeeding Namkoong Keun.  A Seoul National University graduate majoring in mechanical engineering, Kim earned a master’s degree in mechanical engineering and a PhD in industrial engineering at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.He has been a professor at SeoulTech since 1985.He previously worked as an organizing committee member for the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology technicians’ training program, and strategic technology development project adviser under the Knowledge Economy Ministry (now Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy).Kim won a majority in the first vote from the recommendation committee in July. After further evaluation of his research ethics, he was recommended for the post to the Minister of Education.“I will create an environment where more

Nov 9, 2015By Park Jin-hai
SeoulTech appoints president

Global strategies to reinvigorate banks

By Tuneer De South Korea was one of the countries hardest hit during the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, but Korean banks reacted very effectively in the years following this crisis. They complied with economic reforms diligently to create greater transparency in financial systems and reduce interest rates. Banks thus played a part in stabilizing the country, leading to an annual GDP growth rate of 10.7% in 1999, merely two years after the crisis started.In recent years, many Korean banks have expanded to allied services through financial subsidiaries. The majority of their profits, however, still comes from traditional banking services such as personal loans and mortgages. In the face of a rapidly changing and globalizing market, Korean banks must reinvent themselves to maintain their competitive edge.One way for banks to expand their horizons is to identify certain niche communities which are not receiving the kind of banking services they want. For example, banks could support SME’s in emerging industries by creating a conducive eco-system by providing specialized services

Nov 9, 2015
Global strategies to reinvigorate banks

TonyMoly appoints new CEO

Yang Chang-sooBy Park Jin-haiTonyMoly, a Korean cosmetics company, said Monday that it has appointed ex-AmorePacific exec as its CEO.Yang Chang-soo, 51, will lead the mid-sized cosmetics firm, which went public in July and is fast expanding its global presence.Yang studied agricultural economics at Korea University before joining AmorePacific, the nation’s largest cosmetics brand. He was in charge of department sales before serving as CEO of its brand Etude House and vice president of marketing. After he left the company, he joined Shinsegae International’s VIDIVICI cosmetics brand as vice president where he worked until the end of 2014. “While working in the cosmetics industry for a long time, he has earned a reputation as someone who can ratchet up a brand’s potential in a short time through various innovative marketing campaigns,” said a company official.Previously, the cosmetics maker has been plagued with rumors that its CEOs have had conflicts with its chairman. In the last two years, the company has had five new CEOs including Yang. Before hi

Nov 9, 2015By Park Jin-hai
TonyMoly appoints new CEO

Fintech incorporation essential for banks' growth

By Lim Jee-soo With technology progressing far beyond what could have ever been imagined in the past, traditional industries have to reevaluate the way they conduct business in order to survive in an ever-changing landscape. The banking industry is no exception; with digitalization changing the way people handle their monetary assets, payments, transfers and loan issuances are now only a smartphone application away. Korean banks have already taken major steps to integrate technological advances into their operations. Updating their services to include online and mobile banking is no longer an option for banks, but a necessity if they wish to maximize their reach to potential clients. This can be attributed to the high proliferation rate of smartphone usage in Korea. KB Research reported that roughly 80 percent of all Korean phone users possess smartphones, of which more than half – approximately 25 million people – utilize applications that provide smart banking services.The opening of Bank Woori Saudara, a 74:26 joint venture set up between Korea’s Woori

Nov 9, 2015
Fintech incorporation essential for banks' growth

EF to offer educational materials on 2018 Winter Olympics

 Christopher McCormick, second from right, senior vice president of EF Education First, poses with Cho Yang-ho, second from left, president of the PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games, after signing an education sponsor agreement at the Korea Press Center in Seoul, Thursday. Also pictured are the committee’s Vice President Kwak Young-jin, left, and EF Korea Country Manager Yoon Seon-joo. / Courtesy of EF Korea By Chung Hyun-chae EF Education First will provide educational content about the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics starting next March in cooperation with the Olympics organizing committee.Christopher McCormick, senior vice president of the international education company, signed an education sponsor agreement with Cho Yang-ho, president of the PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games, at the Korea Press Center in Seoul, Thursday.Under the accord, the Switzerland-headquartered EF becomes an official education sponsor of the Winter Olympics to offer exclus

Nov 6, 2015
EF to offer educational materials on 2018 Winter Olympics
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