ESG initiatives
Scope
Date
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Cryptocurrencies
Kakao’s Ground X to work on Korea central bank digital currency initiative
Kakao Corp.’s blockchain arm Ground X was selected as a simulator for the Bank of Korea-led central bank digital currency (CBDC) project, beat...
Jul 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Corporate bonds
Korea Investment raises $600 mn in first foreign currency bond issue
Korea Investment & Securities Co. raised $600 million in its first foreign currency bonds at lower-than-planned interest rates on strong demand....
Jul 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
BlackRock in talks to acquire Korea’s ESG-focused IGIS Private Equity
BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager, is in talks to acquire IGIS Private Equity, a South Korea-based firm specialized in eco-fri...
Jul 12, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Corporate bonds
KOGAS, Hyundai Motor Turkish unit issue foreign currency bonds at narrower spreads
Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) and Hyundai Motor Co.’s Turkish unit sold foreign currency corporate bonds at narrower spreads than their initial targ...
Jul 07, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Hyundai Motor releases 2021 sustainability report with profitability focus
Hyundai Motor Co. will focus on ramping up global sales of high-profit vehicles such as its SUVs and Genesis models, according to its annual sustain...
Jul 06, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Crude oil, nitric acid and yarn turn eco-friendly amid ESG boom
South Korean material makers are boosting their efforts to go green as they increasingly adopt eco-friendly technologies for raw materials such as c...
Jul 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG bonds
LG Chem to issue up to $1bn ESG bonds; Moody’s raises outlook to positive
South Korea’s largest chemical producer LG Chem Ltd. plans to issue up to $1 billion in dollar-denominated green bonds to raise funds for its ...
Jun 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
SK Chairman vows to achieve carbon neutrality ahead of 2050 UN target
SK Group has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality prior to 2050, the year set by the United Nations (UN) to reach net-zero carbon emissions globally...
Jun 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG bonds
Korean Air to issue first ESG bonds among Korean carriers
Korean Air Lines Co. will issue green bonds as part of its 200 billion won ($176 million) corporate debenture issue -- to become the first among dom...
Jun 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Korea’s coal power companies squeezed for financing amid ESG fever
South Korea’s coal power companies are facing tighter scrutiny for debt financing as they are increasingly shunned by financial investors amid...
Jun 18, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
GS Caltex marks Korea’s first company to buy carbon-neutral crude oil
GS Group has become South Korea’s first business group to purchase carbon-neutral crude oil, in a move to strengthen its ESG efforts.South Kor...
Jun 17, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Hydrogen economy
Hyundai, SK, POSCO, Hyosung agree to launch Korea’s hydrogen council
Hyundai Motor Group and three other South Korean conglomerates have agreed to launch an industry-wide consultative body on hydrogen, underscoring an...
Jun 10, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG investing
Korean insurers finance Carlyle's $2 bn deal with ESG debt
South Korean life insurers have made an environmental, social and governance (ESG)-themed investment in The Carlyle Group's €2 billion ($2.4 bi...
Jun 08, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Korea’s corporate HQ buildings are becoming clean power generators
ESG is one of the most frequently mentioned keywords in South Korea today. It stands for environmental, social and corporate governance, the three...
Jun 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ASK 2021 Interview
Goldman Sachs zeros in on midmarket, ESG infrastructure deals
Goldman Sachs Asset Management focuses on middle-market, value-add strategy for infrastructure deals, targeting the sectors undergoing a digital tra...
Jun 03, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pension funds
CPPIB says no negative screening for ESG investing
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) does not carry out negative screening to exclude companies and sectors that do not comply with envi...
May 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Hydrogen economy
Lotte Chem in hydrogen deal with Air Liquide, invests $185 mn in materials
South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Corp. is diversifying into electric vehicle raw materials and hydrogen businesses as new growth drivers, moving a...
May 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Webtoons
Kakao Japan secures over $500 mn from Anchor Equity; valuation tops $7 bn
Kakao Corp.’s Japanese unit is set to secure 600 billion won ($530 million) from South Korea-based private equity firm Anchor Equity Partners....
May 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Digital currency
Naver joins Korean central bank's digital currency initiative
South Korea’s platform giant Naver Corp. is taking the leap into the digital currency platform market with its plans to participate in the Ban...
May 14, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean chipmakers
Samsung to invest $151 bn in foundry by 2030, up 28.5% from initial plan
Samsung Electronics Co. will invest 171 trillion won ($151 billion) by 2030 to take over the global foundry leadership from its archrival TSMC. The ...
May 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Hanwha Group secures $4.4 bn from KDB to finance ESG business
South Korea’s Hanwha Group has clinched a 5 trillion won ($4.4 billion) commitment from the state-run Korea Development Bank over the next fiv...
May 12, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG investment
LG Chem to invest $134 mn in incubator fund for firms with ESG tech
LG Chem Ltd., South Korea’s leading chemical and battery maker, said on Tuesday it is investing 150 billion won ($134 million) in an incubator...
May 11, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Samsung Group
Hong Ra-hee: Chief architect of Samsung Group’s art initiative
Samsung Group founder Lee Byung-chul was known to be one of the most avid collectors of Korean antiques. Among his vast collection of priceless cult...
Apr 30, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG bonds
Hanwha Solutions to raise 1 billion yuan in ESG bonds
South Korea’s leading renewable energy company Hanwha Solutions Corp. plans to raise 1 billion Chinese yuan ($153 million) this month in green...
Apr 15, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
BOK to stop investing in low ESG scorers
South Korea’s central bank will exclude companies with low ESG ratings from its portfolio of foreign currency assets. The Bank of Korea has de...
Apr 01, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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LG Group
LG strengthens ESG push with committee set-up
LG will create ESG (environment, social and corporate governance) Committee and Internal Trading Committee within the holding company and key affili...
Mar 19, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
ESG becomes name of the game on Korean corporate boards
South Korea’s big companies, such as Samsung, Hyundai and LG, are increasingly embracing environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards ...
Jan 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
Korea requires major companies to disclose ESG activities from 2025
Big companies listed on South Korea’s major stock market will be required to disclose their business activities related to environmental, soci...
Jan 14, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG bonds
S.Korea's ESG bond issues could top $920 mn in Jan
South Korea's environmental, social and governance (ESG) bond market is seeing strong growth as companies are driven by institutional investors' inc...
Jan 06, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Interview
Kyobo Life looks to invest in ESG bonds; calls for easing rules
South Korea’s Kyobo Life Insurance Co. is planning to invest several hundreds of millions of dollars in environmental, social and governance (ES...
Nov 15, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
Latest News
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- 2 AI startup MarqVision raises $16.5 mn to close Series A
- 3 Taihan Cable wins $630 mn power grid project in Singapore
- 4 Korean startup scene is gloomy, say 2 out of 5 startup CEOs
- 5 MBK ups stakes for Korea Zinc to match buyback offer