Financial Life Guidebook for Foreigners
Scope
Date
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Mergers & Acquisitions
KDB seeks to sell $2.3 bn CBs in HMM to lay groundwork for stake sale
The state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) is seeking to sell 2.6 trillion won ($2.3 billion) in perpetual convertible bonds issued by HMM Co., th...
Jul 19, 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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Central banking
Fed’s Powell, BOK chief to meet during G20 gathering
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Lee Ju-yeol will meet during a Group of 20 (G20) gathering of finance ministe...
Jul 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Private equity
STIC to cash in on Aug IPOs following HYBE block sale
South Korea's private equity firm STIC Investments Inc. is tipped to be one of the main beneficiaries of upcoming initial public offerings in the co...
Jul 07, 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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Markets
Defense stocks rally in response to China Xi's speech
South Korean manufacturers of jet fighters, aircraft engines and weapon systems saw their share prices soaring in heavy trade on Monday, powered by ...
Jul 05, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Sovereign wealth funds
KIC aims to boost alternatives to 25% by 2027
The Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) will gradually increase alternative investments such as venture capital, private equity and debt, and infrast...
Jul 01, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Artificial intelligence
Samsung Life eyes CPPIB-style stake purchases in GPs
Samsung Life Insurance Co. has drawn attention from South Korean pension and savings funds with its $90 million purchase last month of a stake in Sa...
Jun 28, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Insurance
Taiwan’s Fubon Life raises stake in Korean unit via $405 mn rights offer
Fubon Life Insurance Co., a unit of Taiwan’s Fubon Financial Holding Co., has raised its stake in a Korean joint venture with Hyundai Motor Gr...
Jun 28, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Artificial intelligence
NH Financial to buy $20 mn stake in Japan's solar farm
South Korea's NongHyup Financial Group, or NH Financial Group, has acquired a stake in a solar power plant in Japan from Korea Electric Power Corp. ...
Jun 28, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Krafton hiccup: Financial regulator concerned over high IPO share price
South Korean game developer Krafton Inc.'s road to an initial public offering is getting rocky with the country's financial regulator expressing con...
Jun 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Insurance
Cigna seeks to enter Korea's digital non-life insurance market
The US insurance group Cigna looks set to become the first foreign insurer on South Korea's digital non-life insurance platform, with an aim to crac...
Jun 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Life & Arts
Art auction sales in Korea soar to highest point since 2008 financial crisis
South Korea’s art market is facing the biggest boom since the global financial crisis, drawing wealthy investors and art enthusiasts alike. Se...
Jun 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Artificial intelligence
POBA eyes life science buildings, student housing in Europe via SMA
South Korea's Public Officials Benefit Association (POBA) is targeting life science buildings, last-mile distribution centers and student housing fa...
Jun 22, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Markets
Short-selling ban keeps Korea from MSCI’s developed-markets index
South Korea is unlikely to obtain the global index provider MSCI’s developed-market status this year with the Korean government’s decisi...
Jun 22, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Banking & Finance
Singapore emerges as new financial hub for S.Korean banks
South Korea’s major banks are rushing to Singapore as the city-state is emerging as a new financial hub in Southeast Asia, replacing the tradi...
Jun 18, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Private equity
Harrison Street taps Korean LPs for $1.5 bn life science property fund
The Korean Teachers' Credit Union has committed $100 million to Harrison Street Real Estate Capital's new flagship fund that is aiming to raise $1.5...
Jun 17, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Artificial intelligence
POBA commits over $200 mn to Europe-focused real estate SMA
South Korea's Public Officials Benefit Association (POBA) has committed 270 billion won ($240 million) to a separately managed account (SMA) focusin...
Jun 15, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Banking & Finance
Hana Financial partners with Line to launch digital bank in Indonesia
Naver Corp.’s Japan-based messaging app affiliate Line Corp. is rapidly expanding its digital banking business in Asian countries outside Kore...
Jun 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean stock market
Samsung returns as foreigners’ top pick; Kospi just shy of record high
Samsung Electronics Co., the bellwether of South Korea’s main bourse, has returned as the market darling, with foreigners buying heavily on th...
Jun 03, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Antidepressants
The harder the life, the better for Korea's Whanin Pharm
"When life gets too hard, this is the pharmaceutical company stock you must buy," advises the title of Hanwha Securities' recent research note on Wh...
Jun 02, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Lotte Rental kicks off $360 mn IPO process, seeks $1.8 bn valuation
South Korea’s leading rental car company Lotte Rental Co. has kicked off an initial public offering process to raise some 400 billion won ($36...
May 31, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Stake investments
Samsung Life buys 25% stake in Savills IM for $90 mn
Samsung Life Insurance Co. has agreed to buy a 25% stake in Savills Investment Management (Savills IM) for £63.75 million ($90 million) from U...
May 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Fintech
KakaoBank’s skyrocketing valuation fuels debate on financial reform
There have been near-endless debates regarding the “proper valuation” of KakaoBank, South Korea’s largest internet-only bank that ...
May 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean Investors
Military Mutual picks ex-Lotte Non-Life CIO as investment chief
The Military Mutual Aid Association (MMAA), an $11 billion savings fund for South Korean military officers and personnel, said on Monday it has name...
May 17, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Asset management
Woori Financial takes over Franklin Templeton’s retail fund business
Woori Financial Group has been selected to acquire Franklin Templeton Investments’ retail fund business in South Korea, less than a month sinc...
May 14, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Corporate bonds
Kia raises $700 mn in foreign green bonds
Kia Corp. has issued its first foreign currency ESG bonds worth $700 million to strengthen its investment in electric vehicles and other eco-friendl...
Apr 13, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean stock market
Foreigners return to Korean market; Kosdaq at near 21-year high
Foreign investors, the dominant players on the Korean bourse, are returning as buyers of Samsung Electronics Co. and other blue chips, keeping the m...
Apr 12, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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ESG
BOK tells institutions to cut exposure in high carbon sectors
The Bank of Korea has asked the country’s financial institutions to reduce exposure in economic sectors that generate high levels of carbon em...
Mar 25, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Debt financing
Naver issues $500 million in first foreign debt amid strong demand
South Korea’s top online portal Naver Corp. has successfully issued its first foreign currency bonds worth $500 million amid strong demand as ...
Mar 23, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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