IMM joins $600 mn fund for K-beauty unicorn Goodai Global in M&A drive

IMM Private Equity and five other South Korean private equity firms are set to invest a total of 800 billion won ($600 million) in Goodai Global Inc...

SK Nexilis, LG Energy revive supply ties as US seeks China decoupling

SK Nexilis Co., the world’s largest copper foil maker, has decided to move past a years-long rift with former key client LG Energy Solution Lt...

Seoul likely to miss US tariff deal deadline as Washington abruptly cancels 2+2 trade talks

The United States has abruptly postponed high-level trade talks with South Korea, raising concerns in Seoul that it is slipping down Washington&rsqu...

Kakao, Naver step up global AI hunt amid fierce tech race

South Korea’s internet pioneers, Kakao Corp. and Naver Corp., are ramping up overseas investments in artificial intelligence startups, shiftin...

Olive Young, a must-stop for foreign visitors to South Korea

For many foreign visitors to South Korea, a trip to the beauty retailer Olive Young is as essential as sampling kimchi or touring Gyeongbokgung Pala...

Weverse BTS Community tops 30 mn subscribers, platform's largest

The BTS Community on Weverse, the online fan engagement platform where the boy band first announced plans to return as a full-member group next spri...

Jennie, J-Hope, Jin sweep Spotify’s global K-pop rankings for mid-2025

K-pop icons Jennie of Blackpink and BTS members Jin and J-Hope have taken over Spotify’s mid-year 2025 Global Impact List, claiming the majori...

Blackpink’s Jump tops Spotify Global Chart, sets K-Pop record

With their latest digital single Jump, Blackpink has become the first – and so far only – South Korean act to top Spotify’s Global...

Korea Investment & Securities, UBP seek private banking partnership

Korea Investment & Securities Co. (KIS), a unit of Korea Investment Holdings Co., said on Thursday it has discussed a strategic partnership with...

Hanwha-owned burger chain Five Guys Korea up for sale two years after launch

South Korea’s Hanwha Group is seeking to sell the Korean operations of US premium burger chain Five Guys, two years after the brand’s hi...

S.Korea’s Bebesup earns China nod for baby skincare, eyes global expansion 

Bebesup, a leading South Korean baby skincare and wipe brand, has secured a registration certificate from the China National Medical Products Admini...

At home, K-convenience stores battle stagnation; abroad they're powerful K-food ambassadors

In the bustling backstreets of Ulaanbaatar, shoppers file out of a CU convenience store with instant tteokbokki, or simmered Korean rice cake, packs...

LG Energy, GM’s JV Ultium Cells to retrofit Tennessee plant to produce LFP batteries

Ultium Cells LLC, a battery joint venture between South Korea’s LG Energy Solution Ltd. and General Motors Co., will upgrade its battery cell ...

POSCO to supply HIC-resistant steel for Aramco’s Fadhili gas plant

POSCO, South Korea’s largest steelmaker, will supply hydrogen-induced cracking (HIC)-resistant steel to Saudi Arabian Oil Co., or Aramco, for ...

Samsung supplies newest nanoprism image sensors to Xiaomi to crack Sony’s lead

Samsung Electronics Co. is supplying a new high-performance image sensor featuring nanoprism technology to China’s Xiaomi, as the South Korean...

Organic food chain Chorocmaeul up for sale amid liquidity woes

Financial investors in Chorocmaeul Co., a South Korean organic food store chain, are seeking to sell the management control of the company, which re...

Rap icon Cardi B joins K-beauty’s celebrity fan club with BB cream

Cardi B, the Grammy-winning rapper, has joined the growing list of celebrities spotlighting Korean beauty products, fueling a new wave of global ent...

Sale of $1.5 bn Pangyo Tech 1, overseen by Mirae Asset, draws strong bids from global PEFs

The sale of Pangyo Tech 1, a landmark office tower in Pangyo, South Korea’s answer to the US' Silicon Valley, has drawn strong bidding interes...

The wait is over: BTS are back with new album, global tour in spring 2026

Now the wait is over.BTS are back – as a full-member group after a four-year hiatus.The seven-member boy band is returning with a new album in...

Blackstone in talks to acquire Korea’s top salon chain Juno Hair in $590 mn deal

US private equity firm Blackstone Inc. is pursuing the acquisition of Juno Hair, South Korea’s largest premium hair salon chain, in a deal tha...

Economic strain drives millennials, Gen Z into collectible craze

SHANGHAI – Standing in the rain, lines of people snake along Nanjing Dong Lu, Shanghai’s bustling shopping street, outside a Miniso shop...

Naver Webtoon’s Eleceed: Now anime by studio behind The First Slam Dunk

High school student Seo Jiwoo knows nothing of the hidden world around him. Terrified of his own mysterious powers, he lives quietly, concealing his...

Goldman Sachs acquires Mercure Ambassador: 1st stint with Korean hotels

Goldman Sachs, in partnership with JB Asset Management Co., has acquired Mercure Ambassador Seoul Hongdae, a prominent mixed-use commercial property...

From G-Dragon to Ibuki: Dongmyo emerges as global fashion hotspot

Once a humble thrift market popular among older locals in Seoul, Dongmyo Market, often dubbed Dongmyo flea market, has become a vibrant hotspot for ...

JKL Partners to acquire $150 mn cult-favorite bagel chain London Bagel

JKL Partners Inc., a Seoul-based private equity firm, is set to acquire London Bagel Museum, a growing sensation in South Korea’s booming prem...

LS Electric poised to join Nvidia's supply chain via Vertiv deal

LS Electric Co., a South Korean industrial system supplier, is poised to deliver a large volume of power control equipment, including switchgears an...

Growth equity portfolio largely shielded from policy headwinds: Summit

Growth equity investments have remained largely stable in the face of recent policy shifts, with key sectors like technology and healthcare avoiding...

Lotte Biologics signs antibody drug CMO deal with UK’s Ottimo Pharma

BOSTON – Lotte Biologics Co. has signed a deal to manufacture an antibody therapy for British biotech startup Ottimo Pharma as the South Korea...

Calls grow for stronger LP oversight in national strategic asset M&As

MBK Partners’ takeover attempt of Korea Zinc Inc. has exposed the vulnerability of national strategic assets to private equity ownership, posi...

Amazon, Alibaba, TikTok up ante to woo Korean beauty brands

Riding the wave of global enthusiasm for K-Beauty, e-commerce powerhouses like Amazon and Alibaba are racing to bring South Korean cosmetics and bea...