Articles by Son Ji-hyoung
Son Ji-hyoung
consnow@heraldcorp.com-
[Herald Interview] 8Percent leverages power of platform
The Korea Herald is publishing a series of interviews on promising startups in the fintech industry. This is the sixth installment. — Ed.Peer-to-peer platform can be a destination not only to retail investors seeking higher yields, but also for borrowers taking loans for their business which would face more expensive options from conventional financiers, 8Percent, a South Korean P2P lending platform, said.The power of such a platform is particularly attractive to borrowers holding midrange
Market Dec. 12, 2017
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KRX to nurture 1st venture firm on Kosdaq under ‘Tesla Policy’
Information technology solutions firm Cafe24 gained Monday preliminary approval for an initial public offering on the nation‘s second-tier Kosdaq market operated by the Korea Exchange, marking the first company to be listed through the operator’s “Tesla Policy” introduced in December 2016.Cafe24, a Korean company that offers IT solutions for sellers looking to create online retailers, is expected to earn some 40 billion won ($36.6 million) through the entry into Kosdaq sl
Market Dec. 11, 2017
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Korea nerves fray after first-ever bitcoin futures in US
South Korea was not an exception from a bitcoin price spike Monday, as the US began trading a derivative related to the de facto key cryptocurrency on the Chicago Board Options Exchange on Sunday. As of 1 p.m. Monday, bitcoin in South Korea traded at 19.5 million won ($17,900), up 35.8 percent compared to a day prior, according to data from local coin tracker Coinass. The coin price remained about 10 percent higher than the world average, the data also showed. The surge does not necessaril
Market Dec. 11, 2017
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Kona I, Linxens to seek cooperation in security business
South Korean smart card maker Kona I and French smart card component maker Linxens have signed a strategic cooperation to expand business for payment and security starting next year, Kona I said Monday. The two companies are reviewing various projects, ranging from telecommunication, e-government, access control, financial services to internet of things, among others, according to Kona I. The two have already been working together, for example, with Linxens providing components such as RFID Ante
Market Dec. 11, 2017
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[Kosdaq Star] Seoul Semiconductor unfazed by IT sell-offs
This is the 46th in a series of articles analyzing major companies traded on the tech-heavy Kosdaq market. -- Ed.A tax cut in the US and the strong Korean won has negatively affected a tech rally on South Korean stock markets in the past couple of weeks. The Kosdaq-listed light-emitting diode maker Seoul Semiconductor was no exception, as its share price hit a record 33,550 won on Nov. 27, but backtracked to 28,250 won on Friday, falling 13.1 percent over the past two weeks.But some analysts pai
Market Dec. 10, 2017
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Korea's household debt-to-GDP rises 2nd-fastest: BIS
South Korea’s household debt-to-gross domestic product increased at the second-fastest rate in the world on-year as of first half of this year, reports said Sunday, quoting data from Bank for International Settlement. According to survey of 43 countries conducted by BIS, Korea‘s ratio of total household credit-to-GDP came to 93.8 percent as of the second quarter of 2017, up 4.3 percentage points year-on-year. The data by Basel-based financial institution was released on Dec. 3.T
Market Dec. 10, 2017
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Fintech Center Korea inks partnership with Malaysia
The state-owned Fintech Center of Korea signed a memorandum of understanding Thursday with its Malaysian counterpart, the Fintech Association of Malaysia.Malaysia is the eighth country to partner with Korea to seek bilateral cooperation in financial technology, following the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Singapore, the United States, China and Switzerland. The size of deal has yet to be disclosed, but Korean firms’ entry into “one of the world’s leading payment markets” would be significant
Dec. 7, 2017
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South Korea out of bitcoin futures race
South Korea, an emerging market for cryptocurrency trade, is likely to remain out of the global race to sell bitcoin futures to investors.Securities firms in Korea withdrew plans to draw investments through foreign bitcoin-related derivatives, upon the Financial Services Commission’s order to ban the trade. The direction was sent through the Korea Financial Investment Association on Tuesday.As a result, securities firms such as eBest Investment & Securities and Shinhan Financial Invest
Market Dec. 6, 2017
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[Herald Interview] Coinplug pioneers blockchain-powered security
The Korea Herald is publishing a series of interviews on promising startups in the fintech industry. This is the fifth installment. -- Ed. When it launched a bitcoin exchange in January 2014, blockchain startup Coinplug was well aware of the volatility of the cryptocurrency market. Bitcoin had hit $1,000 for the first time in history a few months earlier, and the price had risen by tenfold in the span of less than a year. The company also witnessed Mt. Gox, then a bitcoin exchange powerhous
Market Dec. 5, 2017
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Toss to fill in financial service industry void in Korea: CEO
South Korea‘s top financial technology mobile app Toss is poised to fill in “a void in the financial service industry” in the nation, providing users various services ranging from cash management accounts, credit score reviews, peer-to-peer investment and even bitcoin, according to app operator Viva Republica’s chief executive on Tuesday.“Korea has long suffered a void in the financial service industry,” CEO Lee Seung-gun said in the fintech startup’s fi
Market Dec. 5, 2017
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[Global Finance Awards] KEB Hana Bank’s PB track record under global spotlight
KEB Hana Bank, one of four major South Korean commercial banks, has attracted global attention through its private banking prowess mainly by taking advantage of artificial intelligence. By adopting a private banking service -- designed to manage wealth of the affluent through insurance, succession planning and investments in funds and properties -- for the first time among Korean banks in 1995, KEB Hana Bank has long been recognized as a leader in the sector in Korea. The bank‘s private ba
Market Dec. 4, 2017
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[Global Finance Awards] KB Financial Group chair Yoon Jong-kyoo’s aggressive M&As bear fruit
Since taking office in November 2014, Yoon Jong-kyoo, chairman of KB Financial Group, has turned KB Financial Group -- then reeling from a massive information leak -- into a top integrated financial services provider in South Korea, both in size and quality. Yoon’s aggressive takeovers following his pledge to strengthen non-banking units’ performance have since proven successful. KB Financial Group‘s net profit has increased 50 percent in two years, to 2.1 trillion won ($1.93 b
Market Dec. 4, 2017
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Market boom dwarfs price boost from share buyback
The boom in the stock market this year was so large that it has overshadowed the boost in share prices that occurred when listed firms bought back their shares, data showed Monday.The 54 share buybacks from 33 listed firms on the first-tier Kospi this year led to a 3.4 percent jump in firms’ share price on average. The Kospi, however, rose 5.4 percent on average over the cited period, according to data compiled by the Korea Exchange as of Nov. 29. Excluding four share repurchases of market
Market Dec. 4, 2017
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Rising expectations for 3% growth, GNI per capita of $30,000 next year
Expectations are rising that South Korea may achieve 3 percent on-year growth in nominal gross domestic product and surpass $30,000 in gross national income per capita in 2018, on the back of the strong global economy, experts said Sunday, citing data from financial institutions and think tanks. The International Monetary Fund raised the economic outlook of Korea for 2018 to 3 percent in October, up 0.2 percentage point from that of April. On Tuesday, the Organization for Economic Cooperat
Economy Dec. 3, 2017
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HMP Law to hold blockchain seminar on Dec. 15
South Korean law firm HMP Law said Sunday it will hold a blockchain seminar on Dec. 15 to explore and compare the regulatory environments of different legal jurisdictions including Korea. HMP Law will invite legal experts from Korea, the United States, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland and Estonia to be speakers at the seminar. The speakers, including partner of HMP Law Ahn Chan-sik, will outline current legal frameworks and the future outlook.“As often happens, legal and regulatory sys
Market Dec. 3, 2017
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