S&P Global Ratings on Thursday lowered the outlook for two major Korean asset management firms, Mirae Asset Securities and Korea Investment & Securities, from "stable" to "negative." The agency kept their long-term issuer credit ratings at BBB and short-term ratings at A-2. The negative outlook reflects the agency's concern that property risks could strain the asset quality and profitability of Korean securities firms over the next one to two years. "Headwin

Economy March 8, 2024

Ratings agency Moody's downgraded the outlook on the South Korean banks' credit rating to "negative" from "stable" Thursday, predicting their asset quality and profitability will weaken. The agency released a report on the Korean banking system and lowered the credit ratings outlook for the local banking sector to "negative." In its assessment, Moody's anticipated a deterioration in the business environment for domestic banks over the next 12 to 18 mo

Economy March 8, 2024

Woori Bank, South Korea's fourth-largest commercial lender, is enhancing its private banking services to solidify its reputation as a trustworthy institution for clients. In a press conference Thursday, the bank unveiled its renewed commitment to expanding its presence in the asset management sector amid ongoing trust issues within the banking industry. With this vision, Woori Bank has assembled a team of experts spanning various sectors, such as tax, foreign exchange and real estate. The l

Industry March 7, 2024

A NongHyup Bank employee is being investigated by local police for possible embezzlement reaching nearly 11 billion won ($8.2 million), the bank disclosed on Wednesday. The bank's internal investigation revealed a financial irregularity that could extend up to 10.95 billion won, which is the total amount of the financial products the accused employee had handled at the related department between March 2019 until November last year. According to an official from the bank, a 1.2 billion won d

Industry March 6, 2024

Jung Gue-don, the former chief technology officer of Kakao Bank, has recently been nominated as the tech chief of Kakao, the Internet giant and the online-only lender's largest shareholder, according to industry sources on Tuesday. The new appointment, however, is facing a backlash, as Jung had come under fire for selling off some 7.6 billion won ($5.7 million) of stocks in Kakao Bank for a quick profit. He dumped 90 percent of his shares just three days after the lender’s market debu

Industry March 5, 2024

Orange, green and blue -- the mixture of these vibrant colors is not something you would commonly expect to see at a commercial bank's branch in Korea. Yet welcoming customers into Shinhan Bank's Sillim-dong branch are color-coded floor lines guiding customers to their respective services. For instance, following the green line leads to desks handling simple tasks like deposits and withdrawals. This Sillim-dong branch, situated in southern Seoul's Gwanak-gu district, is among Shin

Economy March 4, 2024

Major Korean financial groups are intensifying efforts to broaden and diversify their boards in response to a governmental drive for inclusivity within the sector. Woori Financial Group is appointing two new female members to its outside board of directors for the first time in its history. Lee Eun-ju, a media expert from Seoul National University, and Park Sun-young, an economics professor from Dongguk University, will replace the company's first and only female outside director, Song Soo-

Industry March 3, 2024

In just nine days of its release, a 16-second video featuring trot singer Lim Young-woong posted on YouTube by Hana Bank has garnered over 6.8 million views as of Sunday. The video introduces the 32-year-old singer as the new face of Hana Financial Group, one of Korea's top five financial conglomerates. The YouTube channel of the group's banking subsidiary Hana Bank has also seen a substantial increase in subscribers, jumping from 188,000 to 218,000 within the same period. Hana's

Industry March 3, 2024

South Korea has become one of the first countries to implement the so-called “global minimum tax rule” this year, which aims to ensure companies pay at least 15 percent tax on corporate income, regardless of where they operate. The initiative aligns with international efforts to tackle tax avoidance by major corporations, as they often seek refuge in low-tax jurisdictions. Korea is one of about 20 nations to adopt the new rule so far, while some countries, including the US, are still

Economy Feb. 27, 2024

Kyobo Life Insurance has been named the nation's most-admired life insurer for the second consecutive year, reflecting CEO and Chair Shin Chang-jae's steadfast commitment to a sustainable management philosophy. The Kyobo subsidiary announced it received the honor on Tuesday from the Korea Management Association Consulting, marking its second straight year being recognized as the top life insurer at KMAC's most-admired companies ceremony. This year, Kyobo Life also secured a place

Industry Feb. 27, 2024

South Korea has tightened household debt regulations with the introduction of "stress interest" to the debt service ratio system across the banking sector, effective Monday. The Financial Services Commission has implemented the stress DSR system, which imposes surplus interest -- called stress interest -- to reflect potential future interest rate hikes when the borrower executes the loan. The DSR gauges the amount a borrower has to pay for principal and interest relative to annual inco

Industry Feb. 26, 2024

South Korean regulators warned Thursday of increasing risks in the domestic financial sector due to overseas real estate investments, with around 2.46 trillion won ($1.85 billion) exposed to potential risk, while also aiming to reassure the public that the impact on the overall industry will be limited. The Financial Supervisory Service issued the statement following its assessment of local financial institutions' investments in real estate overseas, amid some concerns about the cooling of

Economy Feb. 22, 2024

Foreigners seeking to invest in the Korean capital markets will be able to exchange foreign currencies for Korean won more easily starting in the next quarter, according to the South Korean government on Wednesday. The revision comes as part of the government's efforts to enhance efficiency and stability of securities settlement and foreign exchange trading for offshore investors. The Finance Ministry, the Bank of Korea, the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Servic

Economy Feb. 21, 2024

The downturn in the US commercial property market, which has already hit banks in New York, Japan and Europe, is beginning to loom over South Korea, with around 1 trillion won ($750 billion) in losses already confirmed by the big financial conglomerates. The total amount of overseas commercial real estate exposures (risks inherent in investments) by the five major Korean financial companies has reached 20.39 trillion won so far, according to data received from the companies and compiled by Rep.

Economy Feb. 18, 2024

Toss Securities saw its first profitable year since it started service three years ago by logging 1.53 billion won ($1.15 million) in net profit last year, it said on Thursday. Sales rose by 58 percent on year to 202 billion won in the same period, with the operating loss narrowed by 31.3 billion won to 900 million won. The firm attributed its first profitable year to transaction volume expansion, which led to improved earnings from the trading commission. Domestic and overseas market transactio

Industry Feb. 15, 2024