The South Korean government has unveiled a set of economic measures for the second half, focusing on helping small business owners grappling with debt as the economy continues to show uneven recovery. President Yoon Suk Yeol introduced a 25 trillion won ($18 billion) support package for small business owners and the self-employed burdened by loans, and called for structural measures during a meeting to discuss the direction of economic policy in the second half held at Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesd

Market July 3, 2024

Hana Bank’s foreign exchange trading room in Seoul, the largest in South Korea, completed its first extended trading session on Tuesday. Starting Monday, Korea extended its foreign currency trading hours, pushing the closing time from 3:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. the following day. This move is part of Korea’s strategy to enhance its financial market and attract more foreign capital, with won-dollar trading now available until 5 p.m. in London and 1 p.m. in New York. Additionally, foreign fin

Economy July 2, 2024

Kyobo Life Insurance CEO and Chairman Shin Chang-jae's ethical business practices received global recognition at the Geneve Entrepreneurship Forum on Thursday. The leading life insurer in South Korea said Monday that Shin was awarded the Global Ethics & Stakeholder Commitment Award at the annual entrepreneurship forum held at the International Labor Organization headquarters in Geneva. Each year, the International Council of Small Business gathers distinguished entrepreneurs, legislator

Industry July 1, 2024

South Korea retained its emerging market status by Morgan Stanley Capital International, with the ongoing short selling ban cited as a hindrance to the country's efforts for a status upgrade. "The recent short selling ban introduces market accessibility restrictions," MSCI said Thursday when announcing the results of its market classification review for the global standard indexes. In part, the New York-based index provider acknowledged and welcomed the recently proposed measures

Economy June 21, 2024

NongHyup Bank has teamed up with local livestock fractional investment platform Bankcow to expand their business enabling customers to pool their funds to invest in livestock raised on Korean farms. The bank announced on Thursday that it has entered a strategic business agreement with Stockeeper, the operator of Bankcow, to collaborate on securities token offerings (STOs). "Through this business agreement, our goal is to enhance convenience and security for investors using our fractional in

Industry June 20, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol declared a "national emergency on population" Wednesday, rolling out measures to expand cash support for newborn babies and reverse the declining birth rate trend. "The population crisis caused by extremely low birth rates is the foremost and critical issue for South Korea," Yoon said, adding that the rapid population decline has now become a matter "prompting concerns about the very survival of South Korea." Yoon made the announcement during

Economy June 19, 2024

South Korean banks are bolstering their services for foreigners to tap into the rapidly expanding foreign customer market. Shinhan Bank recently pioneered a service among local commercial banks that allows foreign residents in Korea to conveniently apply for new check cards online through its mobile app SOL Bank. With its newly implemented foreign identification verification system, foreigners aged 17 or older with valid domestic identification documents, like an alien registration card or domes

Industry June 16, 2024

South Korea's ban on the short selling of stocks is set to be extended until March next year. The projected deadline was discussed during a government-parliament meeting between the country's top financial regulators and the ruling People Power Party on Thursday to discuss the enhancement of short selling regulations. "We have proposed extending the short selling ban until March 2025, after the development of the computerized monitoring system," said lawmaker Jeong Jeom-sig,

Economy June 13, 2024

South Korean card issuer Shinhan Card is collaborating with regional Canadian governments and state-run tourism promotion agencies for local tourist marketing, starting with Alberta. Shinhan Card, the card arm of Korean finance giant Shinhan Financial Group, announced on Tuesday that it has signed a strategic partnership agreement with the Government of Alberta, Canada, to jointly develop services and launch marketing initiatives targeting tourists visiting Alberta. The signing ceremony took pla

Industry June 12, 2024

The chief of the state-run Korea Development Bank on Tuesday unveiled plans to provide 100 trillion won ($72.5 billion) in policy funds for the development of high-tech industries while continuing efforts to push for the relocation of headquarters to Busan. KDB Chairman Kang Seog-hoon made the announcement during his second-anniversary press conference held at the bank's headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, and called for swift legal revisions to implement the plans. "We are currently prepa

Economy June 11, 2024

More local banks are implementing so-called optional "parental resignation" programs as internal welfare measures, as one attempt to address the nation's notoriously low birth rate problem. According to industry sources, Woori Bank recently received applications for parental resignations with the guarantee of re-employment. A total of 35 employees applied, and they are scheduled to resign at the end of this month to begin a maximum two and a half years of unpaid child care leave.

Industry June 11, 2024

The number of underage stakeholders in Samsung Electronics, the country's largest company by market capitalization, has surged nearly 21 times in four years, reaching almost 400,000. According to the Korea Securities Depository's securities data portal, as of the end of last year, there were 391,869 Samsung Electronics shareholders under the age of 20, making up 8.38 percent of the total 4,672,130 shareholders. The total value of Samsung Electronics shares owned by these underage inves

Market June 10, 2024

Major business leaders in South Korea, Japan and China unanimously agreed on the need to enhance economic ties, with the highest expectations placed on economic revitalization and supply chain stability, a recent survey conducted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry revealed Sunday. The findings come from an on-site survey conducted at the trilateral business summit held on May 27 in Seoul, with 136 business leaders responding regarding their views on economic cooperation. The survey hi

Economy June 9, 2024

South Korea's initial public offering market is set to maintain its momentum in the latter half of the year, driven by the stock market recovery, as well as the successful listings of big names earlier this year. Having shaken off last year's slump, the total amount raised through IPOs stood at 1.6 trillion won ($1.16 billion) as of end-May, accounting for over 40 percent of the previous year's annual total of 3.86 trillion won. Just in June, an additional 700 billion won is expected to flood in

Market June 9, 2024

Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, the nation's leading non-life insurer, gathered insurance experts from inside and outside the country to share insights about the industry and Korea's insurance landscape at the Korea International Insurance Conference. The inaugural event, held Tuesday and Wednesday at the Mohegan Inspire Resort in Yeongjongdo, Incheon, marked the first global insurance conference in Korea, according to the Samsung Group subsidiary. "With the insurance industr

Industry June 6, 2024