South Korea’s major banks have been asking employees to accept early retirement to cut costs amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic, industry sources said Wednesday.  More than 1,700 employees at the nation’s five major commercial banks here -- Woori, Hana, Shinhan, KB Kookmin, NH NongHyup -- were offered early retirement between the end of December last year and early this year, industry data showed. To cope with financial setbacks stemming from the pandemic, local banks ar

Korea Investment & Securities board agreed to pay 142 billion won ($128.9 million) to its wholly owned subsidiary Korea Investment Value Asset Management, as Kakao Bank moves on to raise nearly a combined 1 trillion won by year-end before an initial public offering poised to take place next year, filings showed Wednesday. KIVAM is currently the second-largest shareholder of Kakao Bank after internet giant Kakao. KIVAM‘s proceeds will be used to buy 6 million newly issued common shar

Korean Air Lines is inching closer to selling its yacht marina operation in Incheon to a new Korean buyer for roughly 130 billion won ($117 million). The investor group of Consus Asset Management and Mirae Asset Daewoo said Monday it has signed a memorandum of understanding as a preferred bidder to buy 100 percent stake in Wangsan Leisure Development, operator of Wangsan Marina, which is wholly controlled by the nation’s No. 1 flag carrier.　 Wangsan Marina was built in 2016. Part of the

South Korea’s central bank said Monday that the percentage of 50,000 won ($45.26) notes returned to the bank plummeted to a record low due to sentiment surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. The return rate fell to 25.4 percent for the first 10 months of this year, the lowest level since the notes began circulating in June 2009 and 39.4 percentage points lower than for the same period last year, the Bank of Korea said in a report. The BOK issued 21.9 trillion won worth of 50,000 won notes

DIGITAL INNOVATION / HANA BANK

SOCIAL CONTRIBUTION / NH NONGHYUP BANK

The number of South Koreans that flocked to banks to open new overdraft accounts surged in recent days, following the financial authorities’ announcement to tighten lending rules in a bid to curb the nation’s growing household debt, industry data showed Sunday. The five major banks here -- KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH NongHyup -- saw their customers open a combined average of roughly 5,500 accounts daily in days following Nov. 20. The figure stood at 6,324 on Nov. 20 and

NH Financial Group Chairman Kim Kwang-soo has officially been tapped to lead the Korea Federation of Banks, a representative body of commercial banks, officials said Friday.  The KFB board of directors unanimously approved Kim’s nomination as its 14th chairman during a general meeting held early in the morning. The appointment came after Kim was picked as the sole candidate to be KFB chief Tuesday, among seven candidates initially recommended for the post. Kim’s three-year te

Woori Financial Group said Wednesday that it has set up a 200 billion won ($180 million) fund to invest in social infrastructure projects, called the “Woori Global Infra New Deal Fund.”  In September the government announced its New Deal Fund, a state-led fund worth 20 trillion won aimed at investing in tech and green sectors, including artificial intelligence, renewable energy and hydrogen vehicles, through money pooled from government agencies, private financial institutions

NH Financial Group Chairman Kim Kwang-soo is likely to offer resignation soon as he was named the sole candidate to represent the nation’s largest bankers’ club, according to reports quoting insiders said Tuesday. On Monday, board members of the Korea Federation of Bank unanimously nominated Kim, among six other candidates. The federation is set to hold a general meeting on Friday to put Kim’s nomination to vote. If elected, Kim will officially start his term on Dec. 1, rep

South Korea’s real estate investment trust, indirectly controlled by Hong Kong-listed real estate platform ESR, said Monday that it is gearing up for an initial public offering that will raise 357.3 billion won ($321.3 million) before a listing on the main stock bourse, Kospi, to attract retail investors to its industrial portfolio. The new REIT, dubbed ESR Kendall Square REIT, will become the first listed REIT dedicated to logistics properties in Korea if the IPO goes ahead as planned l

Controversy escalated Sunday over the proposed business integration plan of South Korea’s two flag carriers -- Korean Air Lines and Asiana Airlines -- as to whether the fundraising plan of Korean Air’s parent company Hanjin KAL to achieve the tie-up is legally viable. State-run lender and creditor Korea Development Bank has addressed concerns over the possibility of an injunction court order that might kill its plan of providing 800 billion won ($716 million) to Hanjin KAL in retur

South Korea’s sovereign wealth fund Korea Investment Corp. said Sunday that it was now a member of the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Fund, the world’s largest multilateral working group convened by sovereign wealth funds across the globe to promote cooperation on climate change.  Established Dec. 12, 2017, at the “One Planet Summit” -- a global coalition launched by the French government and the UN to work together on climate change -- the fund exists to develop a f

South Korean banking groups are set to tighten lending rules for overdraft accounts, lowering borrowing limits amid government efforts to put a brake on the nation’s fast-growing household debt, industry data showed Friday. The five major commercial banks here -- KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Woori, Hana and NH NongHyup -- have started lowering limits for their key overdraft account products designed for “high-income individuals and professionals” from an average 200 million won ($179,