NH, KB Securities, Kookmin Bank, Kim & Chang lead capital markets in H1

NH, KB Securities, Kookmin Bank, Kim & Chang lead capital markets in H1

NH Investment & Securities Co. retained its lead in South Korea’s equity capital market (ECM) in the first half, riding a surge in large-s...

Fubon Bank expands Korea presence into banking

Fubon Bank expands Korea presence into banking

Fubon Bank, Taiwan’s largest bank, is poised to open its first office in Seoul in July, expanding its footprint in South Korea beyond insuranc...

KakaoBank rallies after winning Thai virtual banking license

KakaoBank rallies after winning Thai virtual banking license

Shares in KakaoBank Corp. soared as much as 17% to hit their highest level in nearly three years on Friday after the South Korean internet-only bank...

LG CNS forms strategic partnership with robotics startup Skild AI

LG CNS forms strategic partnership with robotics startup Skild AI

LG CNS Co., the information technology service arm of LG Group, said on Tuesday it has formed a strategic partnership with Skild AI to develop AI-dr...

Koramco targets $7 bn bet on Korea data centers

Koramco targets $7 bn bet on Korea data centers

Koramco Asset Management Co., South Korea’s leading real estate investment firm, plans to invest 10 trillion won ($7 billion) in domestic data...

Korea to allow non-profits to buy bad consumer loans

Korea to allow non-profits to buy bad consumer loans

The Financial Services Commission (FSC) has proposed regulatory changes that would allow non-profit organizations to purchase bad loans from individ...

US monitors NPS, sovereign funds in expanded currency surveillance

US monitors NPS, sovereign funds in expanded currency surveillance

Washington will strengthen its monitoring of portfolio investments by pension and sovereign wealth funds of its trading partners as it broadens its ...

Korea’s stablecoin trade at $42 bn; BOK balks at non-bank stablecoin deals

Korea’s stablecoin trade at $42 bn; BOK balks at non-bank stablecoin deals

South Korea’s central bank is cautious about non-banks and fintech firms issuing and handling stablecoins amid a global cryptocurrency rally, ...

Korea Post to commit $150 mn to mid-cap infrastructure funds

Korea Post to commit $150 mn to mid-cap infrastructure funds

Korea Post will commit $150 million to one or two global asset managers for mid-cap infrastructure equity investments, the postal service agency sai...

BOK turns more dovish after 25 bp rate cut; 2025 growth outlook halved

BOK turns more dovish after 25 bp rate cut; 2025 growth outlook halved

The Bank of Korea (BOK) on Thursday cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 2.5%, citing growing concerns over faltering do...

S.Korean military fund to make $73 mn commitment to real estate funds

S.Korean military fund to make $73 mn commitment to real estate funds

The Military Mutual Aid Association (MMAA), a South Korean retirement fund, is stepping up efforts to diversify its investment portfolio with a 100 ...

DB Group eyes Hanyang Securities amid KCGI deal uncertainty

DB Group eyes Hanyang Securities amid KCGI deal uncertainty

DB Group, which owns DB Securities Co. and DB Insurance Co., is considering acquiring Hanyang Securities Co., as a deal by South Korean private equi...

NPS to ramp up shareholder engagement with overseas companies

NPS to ramp up shareholder engagement with overseas companies

South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) plans to deepen shareholder engagement with its foreign portfolio companies, signaling a more ass...

Korean pension funds, insurers seek customized investment vehicles

Korean pension funds, insurers seek customized investment vehicles

South Korean institutional investors are increasingly interested in separately managed accounts (SMAs) that offer customized strategies, as well as ...

Morgan Stanley stalwart Cho bows out after over 10 years at the helm   

Morgan Stanley stalwart Cho bows out after over 10 years at the helm   

The investment banking head of Morgan Stanley’s Seoul office is stepping down after overseeing a series of landmark deals over more than a dec...

Hamilton Lane invests in IMM infrastructure fund in secondary deal

Hamilton Lane invests in IMM infrastructure fund in secondary deal

Global private market investor Hamilton Lane Inc. has acquired a stake in Seoul-based alternative investment firm IMM Investment’s infrastruct...

Seoul’s prime office transactions rise 6% in Q1 despite weak sentiment

Seoul’s prime office transactions rise 6% in Q1 despite weak sentiment

Despite mounting economic headwinds and heightened investor caution, the prime office market in Seoul posted a modest recovery in the first quarter,...

KIC discusses post-US tariff infrastructure strategy with pension funds

KIC discusses post-US tariff infrastructure strategy with pension funds

The Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) on Tuesday discussed infrastructure investment opportunities and risks in the wake of the US government&rsquo...

Korean teachers' fund to commit $495 mn to 10 PE firms

Korean teachers' fund to commit $495 mn to 10 PE firms

The Korean Teachers’ Credit Union (KTCU), a retirement fund operator for South Korean teachers, has picked 10 local private equity firms to ru...

Hankook & Company to set up CVC with $11 mn in funding

Hankook & Company to set up CVC with $11 mn in funding

Hankook & Company Co., the holding company of Hankook Tire & Technology Co., announced Thursday a plan to launch a wholly owned corporate ve...

S.Korea’s GEPS to commit $143 million to foreign mid-cap buyout funds

S.Korea’s GEPS to commit $143 million to foreign mid-cap buyout funds

The Government Employees Pension Service (GEPS), one of South Korea’s top three public pension programs, will commit up to 200 billion won ($1...

KakaoBank posts record Q1 profit, eyes Thai expansion after Indonesia

KakaoBank posts record Q1 profit, eyes Thai expansion after Indonesia

KakaoBank Corp., a leading South Korean internet-only bank, posted its highest quarterly profit in the first quarter, defying a drop in interest inc...

Korea Investment & Securities to sell Goldman Sachs funds

Korea Investment & Securities to sell Goldman Sachs funds

Korea Investment & Securities Co. said on Tuesday it is set to sell funds operated by Goldman Sachs Asset Management LP in South Korea, offering...

NPS yet to schedule external manager selection; PE firms’ fundraising woes deepen

NPS yet to schedule external manager selection; PE firms’ fundraising woes deepen

South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS), the world’s third-largest pension fund, has yet to decide on a plan to select local extern...

Woori Financial wins approval for Tongyang, ABL Life acquisition

Woori Financial wins approval for Tongyang, ABL Life acquisition

Woori Financial Group Inc., South Korea’s fourth-largest financial services provider, has received conditional approval from the country&rsquo...

Kookmin Bank raises $700 mn in forex bonds amid strong demand

Kookmin Bank raises $700 mn in forex bonds amid strong demand

Kookmin Bank, a unit of KB Financial Group, raised $700 million in foreign exchange bonds on Tuesday, signaling a recovery in investor sentiment tow...

Mirae Asset to be named Korea Post’s core real estate fund operator

Mirae Asset to be named Korea Post’s core real estate fund operator

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. is set to manage the mandate of more than 600 billion won ($416.8 million) in core real estate fund investment by...

Hanwha Ocean shares sink after KDB's sale of 4.2% stake

Hanwha Ocean shares sink after KDB's sale of 4.2% stake

Investors rushed to dump Hanwha Ocean Co. shares early Tuesday after its second-largest shareholder, Korea Development Bank, cashed in on a 4.2% sta...

KT&G eyes overseas M&A after rejecting activist fund's offer

KT&G eyes overseas M&A after rejecting activist fund's offer

KT&G Corp., South Korea’s dominant tobacco and ginseng producer, is seeking to acquire a Japanese ginseng company after dismissing a 1.9-t...

Kyobo Life poised to buy Japan’s SBI Group-owned savings bank

Kyobo Life poised to buy Japan’s SBI Group-owned savings bank

Kyobo Life Insurance Co. is in the final stages of negotiation with Japanese financial group SBI Holdings Inc. to buy about a 50% stake in SBI Savin...

Hanwha Systems to compete with LIG Nex1 for Korean version of Iron Dome NH, KB Securities, Kookmin Bank, Kim & Chang lead capital markets in H1 From G-Dragon to Ibuki: Dongmyo emerges as global fashion hotspot Hyundai helps Korean economy most with $265 bn contribution South Korea issues €1.4 billion in largest-ever euro bond sale