South Korea’s monthly spending for supporting unemployed workers hit another all-time high in April, as the fallout from the novel coronavirus is hampering efforts to remedy the damage done to the job market, data showed Monday. In April, when Korea’s virus spread peaked, the amount of unemployment benefits came to 993.3 billion won ($814.3 million), up 35 percent on-year, according to preliminary data from the Labor Ministry. This extended the record streak for the third consecuti

The mergers and acquisitions scene in South Korea remains relatively vigorous, as small and medium-sized enterprises are looking for more chances to cash out assets amid the continued COVID-19 threat to markets and industries. With a slowing number of confirmed cases, deals that have been postponed for weeks due to the virus are back on the table. Below is a roundup of major M&A deals here and their progress in the previous week. Centroid to take over Woongjin book unit Woongjin unveiled

Credit card issurers will start receiving registrations of relief subsidies on Monday under governmental guidelines that could expand payment transaction volume by 10 trillion won ($8.2 billion). The news comes along with the central government’s move to distribute 14.3 trillion won among Korean citizens to help them fight the fallout from the coronavirus. Of the total, around 10 trillion won is expected to be spent via credit cards, according to market observers. Taking subsidies via cr

An affiliate of Korean real estate developer SK D&D is poised to acquire the Young City office building complex for 545.8 billion won ($444.6 million), a regulatory filing showed Thursday. A real estate investment trust established by SK D&D’s wholly owned subsidiary D&D Investment will take over the asset from investors including London-based investment firm Actis within May, according to the disclosure. Young City REIT is designed to acquire the asset, generate income th

South Korean law firm Yulchon said Monday that it had named Kim Yong-sang, a US lawyer specializing in international litigation and arbitration, as co-head of its international dispute resolution team. Kim had previously worked as co-representative of the Seoul office of Los Angeles-based international law firm O’Melveny & Myers since 2016. Kim is noted for his 15 years of experience and expertise in US litigation involving antitrust, anti-corruption, international arbitration a

Mirae Asset Global Investments, the asset management arm of Korean financial group Mirae Asset, said Monday that it scrapped a $5.8 billion deal to acquire 15 luxury hotel properties in the United States from Chinese investor Dajia Insurance, weeks after it called off the takeover. Mirae Asset, which acts on behalf of funds it manages, also said it invoked its right for the return of the 10 percent deposit from a third-party escrow agent as the transaction had failed. Amid ongoing litigation,

Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin is likely to accelerate the initial public offering of its subsidiary Hotel Lotte to consolidate his grip on the multinational group’s South Korean entities amid a resurfacing proxy battle with his elder brother Shin Dong-joo, analysts said Monday. This comes as he immediately needs to increase the value of Lotte Corp., a Seoul-based holding firm of Korean-Japanese retail giant. The Hotel Lotte IPO will not only water down its Japanese control but also

Commercial real estate service firm Cushman & Wakefield said Sunday it was looking to introduce a social distancing office design concept to help its clients reopen their workplace and embrace the new norm in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The concept -- dubbed “Six Feet Office” -- was unveiled as the stay-at-home restrictions has been showing signs of imminent alleviation. Ranging from creating visual boundaries using colored carpets and plexiglass shields to office signa

Shared working space platform WeWork said Wednesday that it had opened a 20th location in South Korea. The location in Apro Square, WeWork Shinnonhyeon, is the 12th in Seoul’s affluent Gangnam area, according to WeWork’s Korean unit. The news came over a year after its announcement in March 2019. This is the first location opened since WeWork Korea named Patricia Chun as its new general manager earlier in April. “We have strong belief in Korea as we see the growing demand f

Psomagen, a US company dedicated to genome sequencing technology and DNA testing, said Wednesday it looks to raise at least 57.5 billion won ($47.2 million) in an initial public offering on the Korean bourse. Under the plan to be listed on Kosdaq, Psomagen seeks to issue 4.2 million new common shares, amounting to a 25 percent stake, and offer them to investors in an IPO set to take place in May. Shinhan Investment is an underwriter of the IPO deal. The IPO proceeds will be used to boost its

Amid growing global demand to learn South Korea’s unique quarantine methods that have contributed to bringing the novel coronavirus under control, the nation’s patent office said Tuesday that it will closely work with overseas partners to share its know-how while protecting intellectual property rights of Korean testing kits and other related products at the same time. “The homegrown COVID-19 testing kits are seeing a soaring demand from across the globe, because companies tha

Policy lender Korea Development Bank and fund-of-funds investment firm Korea Growth Investment Corp. said Tuesday they have selected 18 external partners to inject a total of 2.5 trillion won ($2.05 billion) in growth capital to support the scaling up of venture companies here. Of the total of the latest batch, a combined 830 billion won will be backed by state-run financial institutions including KDB, while 50 billion won will come from the state budget. This marks the latest addition to KDB

Korean real estate investment firm Koramco Asset Management said Tuesday it has signed a combined 134 billion won ($109.5 million) in commitments to its two blind-pool funds to capitalize on the potential of the nation’s growing properties market. Mainly targeting real estate investment trusts that eye initial public offerings here, the funds received commitments by undisclosed institutional investors and corporate investors. A REIT refers to a company that owns income-generating commerc

Seoul-based consumer loan provider KB Kookmin Card said Monday that it had signed a deal to buy a controlling 50.99 percent stake in J Fintech, a Thailand-based personal loan provider, for 650 million baht ($20 million). This marks the first acquisition deal that allows a South Korean credit card company to enter the Thai financial market since the Asian financial crisis in 1997. The deal is awaiting approval from the financial authorities in Korea and Thailand. The credit card company ex

South Korea’s financial authorities on Sunday unveiled plans to tighten regulations on privately pooled funds to protect investors, as an embezzlement case surrounding disgraced Lime Asset Management, which drew 1.6 trillion won ($1.3 billion) from investors, shows signs of progress with key suspects being arrested. Under the plans finalized Sunday, a private fund -- which comprises money from no more than 49 investors here -- will be subject to external audits if its assets exceed 50 bi

South Korean genetic technology firm Solgent has picked local brokerage Mirae Asset Daewoo as an underwriter for its initial public offering, buoyed by sales of its diagnostic kits for the novel coronavirus, the company said Thursday. The Daejeon-based company and the underwriter are in the nascent stages of the IPO process, which precedes its listing on the development bourse Kosdaq. Details as to when the company will be listed and which option it will go for have yet to be determined. &ldqu

The signs of a slowing COVID-19 spread on the back of a strong state drive to contain the novel coronavirus are raising expectations of an early recovery of the South Korean economy. Despite the flattened curve of infection cases, it is premature for excessive optimism on Korea posting a V-shaped recovery, considering its heavy dependence on exports for growth, experts said Wednesday. “Given that Korea is quite an export-oriented economy, the slumping global demand is expected to hit th

South Korean crowdfunding platform Wadiz said Wednesday it has launched an offline space to help fundraising efforts by showcasing products to visitors and funders. Located in eastern Seoul, Gonggan Wadiz features a display room for “makers,” or those with an ongoing fundraising project on the Wadiz platform, as well as a workstation and networking space, officials said. Visitors and funders will be able to try the products before they invest in a project, they added. The two-sto

South Korea’s stock market fluctuated as the geopolitical uncertainties triggered by the health condition of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and historic oil price plunge sapped investor sentiment. The benchmark indexes -- main bourse Kospi and Kosdaq -- had a roller-coaster ride. Kospi sank 3 percent to its lowest in the late morning session and the loss narrowed to 1 percent in its closing. Kosdaq saw a 5.6 percent plunge at its largest, and closed 1.4 percent lower. Market bellweth

South Korea’s financial institutions and authorities are in talks to create a bad bank to help companies recoup the losses from disgraced hedge fund Lime Asset Management, according to industry sources Monday. The Financial Supervisory Service held a closed-door meeting with 19 private financial institutions including commercial lenders Woori Bank and Shinhan Bank and securities firms Shinhan Investment and Daishin Securities to discuss details of the private bad bank, or an asset manage