Kookmin Bank to co-finance $840 mn US solar project

Kookmin Bank, South Korea's largest lender, will provide a $100 million loan to finance a solar power project led by US-based investment firm ECP as...

KakaoBank's IPO draws $2 tn in bids despite valuation debate

The initial public offering of South Korea's KakaoBank has drawn the largest-ever amount of bids from institutional investors for a domestic listing...

Kakao’s Ground X to work on Korea central bank digital currency initiative

Kakao Corp.’s blockchain arm Ground X was selected as a simulator for the Bank of Korea-led central bank digital currency (CBDC) project, beat...

Is the KakaoBank IPO too expensive?

Debate is heating up over KakaoBank Corp.’s new share value ahead of an initial public offering of the mobile banking unit of South Korea&rsqu...

Bank of Korea sets stage for tightening after holding rates

South Korea’s central bank chief sent a strong indication of tightening later this year after the Bank of Korea (BOK) left its monetary policy...

Moody's urges Korean banks to beef up online platforms

South Korea's traditional banks, led by KB, Shinhan, Hana and Woori, will need to strengthen their online platforms as KakaoBank, the country's lead...

Korean banks enter digital asset custody market in quick succession

Woori Financial Group has become South Korea’s third major banking group to enter the digital asset custody service (DACS) market, following K...

Online players head S.Korea's biggest month for IPOs

South Korea's initial public offering market in July is expected to see its largest-ever amount of share issues for a single month, worth over 8 tri...

SK REIT to raise $266 million via Kospi IPO in second half

SK Inc.’s real estate investment trust (REIT) affiliate plans to raise as much as 300 billion won ($266 million) via an initial public offerin...

Sale of Citibank Korea gains traction; preferred buyer may emerge in July

The sale of Citibank Korea’s consumer banking business is gaining traction as potential bidders have started due diligence of the bank, with e...

KakaoBank’s $2.3 bn IPO set to alter Korea’s banking landscape

KakaoBank Corp., the mobile banking unit of online messaging app giant Kakao Corp., is looking to raise as much as 2.55 trillion won ($2.26 billion)...

BOK chief signals interest rate hike within 2021

The Bank of Korea needs to drop its accommodative monetary stance of the past two years and to begin raising interest rates from this year, the cent...

BOK ratchets up warning over asset price bubble, private debt

The recent asset price rises in South Korea, in particular in the equities and real estate markets, have been too rapid, even considering an expecte...

Singapore emerges as new financial hub for S.Korean banks

South Korea’s major banks are rushing to Singapore as the city-state is emerging as a new financial hub in Southeast Asia, replacing the tradi...

Hana Financial partners with Line to launch digital bank in Indonesia

Naver Corp.’s Japan-based messaging app affiliate Line Corp. is rapidly expanding its digital banking business in Asian countries outside Kore...

Bank of Korea governor sends stronger signal to raise rates this year

South Korea’s central bank governor on Friday flagged a tighter monetary policy for the second time in less than a month, fueling expectations...

Toss Bank to compete with K Bank, Kakao Bank from September

Toss Bank in September will enter the race of internet-only banks in South Korea as the third player, competing against K Bank and Kakao Bank. Toss ...

KDB bets big on fintech platform Toss ahead of 2023 IPO

The Korea Development Bank (KDB) has decided to invest 80 billion won ($72 million) in the fintech startup Toss via a rights offering. This marks th...

Bank of Korea governor flags rate hike as economy improves

South Korea’s central bank governor on Thursday flagged a possible policy rate hike before the end of the year as the domestic economy recover...

KakaoBank’s skyrocketing valuation fuels debate on financial reform

There have been near-endless debates regarding the “proper valuation” of KakaoBank, South Korea’s largest internet-only bank that ...

Fintech platform Toss seeks $180 mn in fresh funding

South Korean fintech startup Toss is seeking to raise 200 billion won ($177 million) in fresh funding, which would almost treble its valuation to 8 ...

Internet-only K Bank to raise $1.05 bn in rights offering

South Korea’s first internet-only bank, K Bank, will be raising 1.2 trillion won ($1.05 billion) from existing and new investors for business ...

Naver joins Korean central bank's digital currency initiative

South Korea’s platform giant Naver Corp. is taking the leap into the digital currency platform market with its plans to participate in the Ban...

Korea Credit Data raises over $35 mn from Pavilion, GS, KB Bank

South Korea-based fintech firm Korea Credit Data (KCD) has raised around 40 billion won ($36 million) from Singapore-based private equity firm Pavil...

Kakao Bank applies for preliminary review of 2021 IPO

Kakao Bank, South Korea's No.1 mobile banking app., has kicked off the process to go public by applying for a preliminary review of its stock market...

Banks keen to lend to Samsung heirs for inheritance tax

South Korean banks are queuing up to extend credit to Samsung Group's de-facto leader Jay Y. Lee and his family who are due to pay over 2 trillion w...

S.Korean internet-only bank seeks to raise $540 mn; attracts global PE firms

South Korea’s internet-only bank, K bank, is seeking to raise up to 600 billion won ($540 million) through a rights offering, attracting glo...

Korean banks fund alternative deals with $540 mn loans via KIC

South Korean banks have offered a combined $540 million in syndicated loans to fund overseas alternative investments, in which Korea Investment Corp...

Tight margins, regulatory meddling weigh on Korean banks

The five leading banks in South Korea, including Kookmin and Shinhan, logged their first drop in net profit last year in five years, dented by shrin...

Samsung to pay record dividends, more through 2023; Q4 profit jumps

Samsung Electronics Co. has announced that it will pay record-high dividends to its shareholders this year and raise dividends further in coming yea...