Articles by Song Seung-hyun
Song Seung-hyun
ssh@heraldcorp.com-
Woori Bank accelerates overseas expansion
Woori Bank, one of South Korea’s top four commercial banks, has announced its plan to achieve up to 25 percent of its net profit from global sales by 2030. “Woori Bank's global division reported a net profit of $340 million last year, and it has achieved an average annual asset growth of 9 percent during the last three years," Yun Seog-mo, Woori Bank's global business division head said during a press conference held at the bank's headquarters in Seoul on Wednesda
Industry Oct. 25, 2023
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Geopolitical risks hold back South Korea's credit rating upgrade:Fitch
Fitch said that South Korea's "AA-" sovereign rating, which has remained steadfast over 10 years, could be adjusted upward if geopolitical issues such as inter-Korean relations and US-China conflicts are improved, during the 2023 Fitch on Korea seminar held in Seoul on Friday. While improved relations with North Korea are necessary for a positive rating adjustment, Fitch does not see that improvement as promising in the near term, said Jeremy Zook, Fitch's director of Asia-Pa
Industry Oct. 20, 2023
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Kakao faces multiple whammy as CIO arrested
A Seoul court issued an arrest warrant for Kakao Chief Investment Officer Bae Jae-hyun on Thursday on charges of market manipulation related to SM Entertainment's stock price. The development has raised uncertainty about joint projects initiated by Kakao and SM Entertainment. "The arrest warrant was issued due to concerns about Bae destroying evidence or fleeing," the court said. The court dismissed arrest warrants for Kakao's head of investment strategy, surnamed Kang, and
Industry Oct. 19, 2023
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SC Bank Korea CEO nominated for fourth term
Park Jong-bok, the CEO of Standard Chartered Bank Korea, has been nominated as the sole final candidate for the bank's top position again, according to the lender on Monday. The bank's executive candidate recommendation committee selected Park as the final candidate for the next CEO during a meeting held last Friday. If appointed, he will be serving his fourth term, which will last for a year starting Jan. 8, 2024, as the CEO of SC Bank Korea. "Since assuming the top position in 2
Industry Oct. 17, 2023
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FSC lays out plan to boost pet insurance enrollment
The Financial Services Commission, Korea's top financial regulator, unveiled plans on Monday to increase the pet insurance enrollment rate, currently at approximately just 1 percent in a country with some 8 million pets. "The pet insurance enrollment rate in the US is approximately 2 percent, while in Japan, it exceeds 12 percent. Our goal is to position ourselves between these two countries,” Shin Sang-hoon, head of the insurance department at the FSC, emphasized during a press
Industry Oct. 16, 2023
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Over 90% of fines for illegal short selling imposed on foreign firms
More than 90 percent of all fines for illegal short selling of stocks have been issued to foreign financial firms, government data showed, amid calls from Korean retail investors for stricter regulation. According to Financial Services Commission data submitted to Rep. Yun Ju-kyung of the ruling People Power Party, the regulator dealt with 45 cases of illegal short selling in the first eight months of the year, with total fines exceeding 10.7 billion won ($7.9 million). Of the 45 cases, 23 invol
Industry Oct. 15, 2023
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Korean economy expected to grow by 2.1% in 2024: Hana Institute
South Korea's economy is expected to achieve a growth rate of 2.1 percent in 2024, according to the recent report titled "2024 Economic and Financial Market Outlook" by Hana Bank's research institution, the Hana Institute of Finance. “Considering the base effect of the sharp slowdown in 2023, the growth momentum is not strong,” Oh Hyun-hee, a researcher at the Hana Institute of Finance said. The institute forecasts an annual economic growth rate of 1.3 percent f
Industry Oct. 12, 2023
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[HIT Forum] Sci-fi writer on creating compelling space story
Korean science fiction writer Bae Myung-hoon on Wednesday emphasized the importance of bridging the gap between our familiar neighborhoods and space in order to craft compelling space exploration narratives in a Korean setting. He explained that this is difficult, because creators' cognitive range -- the space that creators are familiar with and can describe well -- is limited usually to their surroundings. Korean content consumers also often struggle to simultaneously envision both space
Industry Oct. 11, 2023
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Kakao Bank to acquire 10% stake in Indonesian digital bank
Kakao Bank, the banking arm of Korean mobile giant Kakao, announced Tuesday that it will acquire a 10 percent stake in PT Super Bank Indonesia, aiming to boost its presence in the Southeast Asian market. The acquisition will be Kakao Bank's first investment outside of Korea, and will be done in collaboration with the Singapore-based ride-hailing and food delivery app, Grab. A consortium led by Grab and Singapore-based global telecom company, Singtel, is the largest shareholder of PT Super B
Industry Oct. 10, 2023
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[KH Explains] Foreigner-friendly ID verification service to make mobile banking easier
Sara, a Czech citizen who has been living in Korea for about six years, tried to open an online bank account three years ago. “But it didn’t work, as it wasn’t open to foreigners. I had a lot of trouble with verifying my identity for various services online,” she said. The difficulty in accessing online services due to issues of identity verification has long been a frustration for foreigners residing in Korea, so the Korean government has recently come up with easier mob
Industry Oct. 6, 2023
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1 in 4 foreign workers earn more from unemployment benefits than from work
More than 1 in 4 foreign recipients of unemployment benefits received more last year in unemployment benefits than from the wages they earned before their employment ended, Ministry of Employment and Labor data showed. According to Labor Ministry data submitted to Rep. Kim Sang-hoon of the ruling People Power Party on Wednesday, of 12,100 foreign recipients of unemployment benefits last year, 3,200 (26.4 percent) received more from the scheme than from their previous wages. Rep. Kim expressed
Industry Oct. 4, 2023
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Household debt to GDP at highest level
South Korea's household debt-to-gross domestic product ratio increased the most last year from 2017 among 26 nations that provided such data, despite financial authorities taking various measures to curb it. According to the International Monetary Fund's Global Debt Database, the ratio reached 108.1 percent last year, an increase of 16.2 percentage points from 92 percent in 2017. South Korea is the only country among the 26 countries included in the data set where private sector debt &
Industry Oct. 3, 2023
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120,000 more public homes to be supplied by this year
The Korean government on Tuesday said it plans to supply an additional 120,000 public homes by this year to help ease the housing crunch in the sluggish market. The plan came after the government held a meeting earlier in the day attended by Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho, Land Minister Won Hee-ryong and Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Joo-hyun. Since the second half of last year, rising construction costs and an increase in real estate project financing borrowing rates have worse
Industry Sept. 26, 2023
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KB chief hopes successor transforms group into 'Samsung of finance'
KB Financial Group's outgoing chair, Yoon Jong-kyoo, said Monday that he hopes his successor will realize his unattained goal to grow the group as a top-10 financial firm in the world. "I previously said I want to turn the group into the 'Samsung of finance,' but now that I look back, I feel a lot of regret when thinking about how much progress we've made (on global stage)," Yoon said at a press conference held at the group’s headquarters in Seoul. He will ste
Industry Sept. 25, 2023
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Lee Seung-min wins KB Women's Amateur Golf Championship
Lee Seung-min, a third-grade student at Gyeongju Hwarang High School, won the 16th KB Financial Group Women's Amateur Golf Championship on Friday. Lee finished the second round of the tournament at Century 21 Country Club in Gangwon Province with a total of 6-under 138 strokes to take the top spot. The final round of the tournament was delayed by about two hours due to heavy fog and ultimately had to be canceled. The winner was determined by the combined scores of the first two rounds. Lee
Industry Sept. 22, 2023
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