financial regulators
Scope
Date
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IPOs
KakaoBank becomes Korea's most valuable lender
KakaoBank Corp. became South Korea’s first listed internet-only bank and the country's most valuable lender upon its trading debut on Aug. 6...
Aug 06, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Naver Financial, SoftBank invest $25 mn in blockchain startup TBCASoft
South Korea-based Naver Financial, the fintech arm of online giant Naver Corp., has invested $20 million in a Series B funding round for the US-base...
Aug 05, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Krafton IPO draws lukewarm demand from retail investors
Korea’s major game developer Krafton Inc’s much-anticipated IPO subscription has closed by only drawing a muted response from investors....
Aug 03, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Banking & Finance
Korea’s major banking groups post record-high earnings in H1
South Korea’s major banking groups have posted the highest-ever net profit figures in the first half of this year. Shinhan Financial Group rep...
Jul 27, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Kakao Pay delays IPO following regulator request to refile prospectus
Kakao Pay Corp., the digital settlement platform unit of South Korea’s top messaging app operator Kakao Corp., is delaying its planned initial...
Jul 20, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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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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IPOs
Kakao Pay must refile IPO registration statement to FSS
South Korea’s financial regulator Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on July 16 requested correction of Kakao Pay’s IPO registration st...
Jul 16, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Banking & Finance
Korean banks enter digital asset custody market in quick succession
Woori Financial Group has become South Korea’s third major banking group to enter the digital asset custody service (DACS) market, following K...
Jul 11, 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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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
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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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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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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E-commerce
Naver tipped to pull out of Shinsegae-led eBay Korea deal
In the latest twist to the pending deal worth nearly $4 billion, South Korea's online titan Naver Corp. has tentatively decided to withdraw from a S...
Jun 17, 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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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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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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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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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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Overseas expansion
Regulations drive Naver to seek growth abroad
South Korean platform giant Naver Corp. is seeking growth opportunities abroad to avoid regulatory constraints that hinder its operations at home. T...
Mar 10, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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SK Group's financial story: Measure, divest and focus
Last month, South Korea's third-largest conglomerate SK Group agreed to sell its 21-year-old baseball club SK Wyverns to the country’s leading...
Mar 09, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Pension funds
Korea’s military fund looking for new financial division chief
South Korea’s Military Mutual Aid Association (MMAA) is looking for the successor of its financial division chief Kim Jae-dong, whose extended...
Mar 04, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Australia’s SEEK looking for financial partner to bid for JobKorea
SEEK, Australia’s largest job site, has been in discussions with private equity firms to put in a binding bid in a consortium for South Korea&...
Feb 05, 2021 (Gmt+09:00)
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Real Estate
Hana Financial acquires $740 mn Seattle office tower
Hana Financial Investment has acquired a 95% stake in a 38-story downtown Seattle office tower for $740 million from Skanska AB, a Swiss-based m...
Dec 29, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Sovereign wealth funds
KIC CEO Choi Heenam named S.Korea’s financial ambassador
South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has appointed Choi Heenam, chief executive of the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC), as the country's...
Nov 04, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Biotech stocks
Once high-flying bio stock hit by financial scandal
Helixmith Co., once No.2 stock on the junior Kosdaq market, has lost 40% in the past week following its disclosure of $233 million investment in high-...
Oct 21, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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KB Financial to end coal project financing for low-carbon economy
KB Financial Group will no longer finance coal power projects at home and abroad, nor invest in them, said the South Korean banking group, with a set ...
Sep 28, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean regulator mulls flat-rate underwriting fees to cool IPO hype
South Korean financial regulators are considering introducing flat-rate underwriting fees for initial public offerings, in a move seen aimed at coolin...
Sep 25, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)
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Real Estate
Hana Financial named preferred buyer of $700 mn Seattle office tower: report
A consortium of South Korea's Hana Alternative Asset Management Co. and other units of Hana Financial Group has signed a preliminary agreement to buy ...
Sep 18, 2020 (Gmt+09:00)