A South Korean investor consortium led by Gwangju-based construction conglomerate Jungheung Group has signed a memorandum of understanding to initiate talks surrounding the acquisition of a 50.75 percent stake in Daewoo Engineering & Construction, a filing showed Monday. Following the nonbinding agreement, the investor group -- comprising Jungheung Group and investment bank Mirae Asset Securities -- will carry out due diligence before signing a binding deal with the company‘s largest

Global credit card giant Visa has appointed Patrick Storey, former chief operating officer of consulting and analytics business, as the new head of its overseas unit covering South Korea and Mongolia. He replaces Patrick Yoon, who had led Visa‘s Korea and Mongolia operations since 2018. Joining Visa in1996, Storey worked in the risk management, operations and sales departments in global and regional businesses, according to the company. “Based on his more than 20 years of experi

Buyout firm Hahn & Co., a proposed buyer of a controlling stake in Namyang Dairy Products, said Friday it is considering legal action against ex-Chairman Hong Won-sik, as the proposed seller delayed the deal on the date of the transaction without consent. This comes as the proposed seller put off the extraordinary shareholders meeting scheduled Friday morning by six weeks to early September, citing “more time needed to contemplate on the deal before closing upon the request of both p

Global credit appraiser Fitch Ratings has raised Woori Bank’s long-term credit rating from A- to A in consideration of its sound business performance, the bank said Friday.  The rating agency had maintained the lender’s long-term credit rating at A- for 16 years since 2005. The latest upgrade reflects the company’s efforts to improve risk management skills, asset soundness, profitability and capital adequacy, which has led to a significant increase in earnings, it expl

Global ratings firm Moody’s has raised its rating outlook for JB Financial Group’s commercial banking units -- Jeonbuk Bank and Kwangju Bank -- from stable to positive, while keeping the provincial lenders’ ratings at A1, the banking group said Thursday.  “The outlook upgrade came as Jeonbuk Bank and Kwangju Bank have improved business performance by building various growth strategies centered on improving profits, while maintaining financial soundness,” JB

LG Electronics has completed the sale of a 49 percent stake in its electric vehicle part splitoff for $453.3 million to create a joint venture with Magna International‘s Austrian arm, a filing showed Wednesday. As a result, the new entity LG Magna e-Powertrain will become a 51:49 joint venture of Seoul-based LG Electronics and Magna Metalforming, the Austrian affiliate of Canada-based vehicle engineering firm Magna International. The news comes seven months after the two companies ente

HK inno.N, South Korean pharmaceutical firm and maker of popular hangover drink Condition, is poised to raise 596.9 billion won ($516.6 million) in a forthcoming two-day initial public offering until Friday, a disclosure showed Wednesday. The IPO of the company, formerly known as CJ HealthCare, will give its private investors a chance to immediately cash in 255.8 billion won before its August listing on the Korea Exchange‘s development bourse Kosdaq. Beneficiaries will be three private

IMM Credit Solution, a wholly owned arm of South Korean private equity firm IMM Private Equity, is in the final stage of deal to buy a 40 percent stake in SK Lubricants for 1.1 trillion won ($953 million) in cash this week, a filing showed Wednesday. 　 According to the filing, the deal will reach a final close on Friday as planned to make IMM Credit Solution a minority shareholder of the lube base oil maker that is currently fully owned by refiner SK Innovation. The filing, submitted by SK Inno

Banks say loan to foreigners carry risks, but loan rules are applied equally to locals, non-Korean residents, according to law

The state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea said Sunday it will invest 100 billion won ($87 million) in future mobility businesses to ensure local firms can gain an upper hand in those fields amid a rapidly changing global market. The areas it will allocate investments include electronic, hydrogen-fueled or automatic driving cars, urban air mobility, eco-friendly vessels and aerospace craft. The lender made the investment decision in line with the government-led Korean New Deal initiative, whic

Not just stocks and crypto, young retail investors bet on unconventional, ‘fun’ assets via digital platforms

Climate activists on Friday blasted South Korean builder Hyundai Engineering & Construction for its decision to continue its 1,200-megawatt Quang Trach 1 coal power project along with Mitsubishi and Vietnam’s Construction Corp. Seoul-based not-for-profit organization Solutions for Our Climate said the failure to scrap what was proclaimed to be Hyundai E&C’s final coal project “directly contradicts the company’s own ESG vision” and neutralizes the impact of

NextChapter, a South Korean startup designed to acquire small online native brands active on ecommerce platforms including Coupang, has raised a seed round equity funding to scale up its business largely inspired by a success of US unicorn Thrasio. Joining the round were domestic venture capital houses Klim Ventures and Fast Ventures, as well as foreign VCs BlueRun Ventures and Goodwater Capital. The amount of equity funding remains to be undisclosed. NextChapter said the company will use the

Baemin Hyundai Card, a food delivery-focused private label credit card product, has attracted over 100,000 users in eight months since the launch in November, card issuer Hyundai Card said Thursday. The cardusers are to redeem reward points in the form of “Baemin points,” which can be used like cash exclusively for food delivery orders through Baemin, South Korea‘s largest food delivery app. Baemin Hyundai Card users have food delivered through the Baemin app an average of 9

Major South Korean lender Nonghyup Bank said Thursday it has issued $600 million in social bonds to overseas investors to help support the vulnerable. The bank said it has floated $300 million worth of three-year bonds with an annual interest rate of 0.926 percent, with the remaining $300 million maturing in five years and carrying an interest of 1.325 percent. Nonghyup Bank said the lender has been able to reduce the spread by 0.25-0.3 percentage point as it has attracted bids worth $2.2 bill