Korean VC firms lose appetite for investment in startups amid dearth of IPOs, M&As for exit

South Korea’s startup community is facing its sharpest funding squeeze in over a decade, as venture capital (VC) firms retreat from new invest...

Samsung, Mirae Asset, KB vie for $44.7 bn pension investment pool management

South Korea has opened bidding for the management of its 62 trillion won ($44.7 billion) state pension investment pool, pitting two of the country&r...

Korean stock surge drives 4.08% return for National Pension Service in H1

The National Pension Service (NPS), the world's third-largest pension scheme, posted a 4.08% return on investment in the first half of this year, wi...

S.Korea-US summit yields no joint statement amid split on auto tariffs, MFN status

WASHINGTON D.C. – South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s first bilateral meeting with US counterpart Donald Trump ended in a cordial atm...

Hanwha raises bet on MASGA with $5 bn investment in Philly Shipyard

Hanwha Group will expand its shipbuilding capacity in the US far beyond earlier plans with a $5 billion investment in Hanwha Philly Shipyard as Seou...

Korea Inc pledges $150 bn US investment; KAL buys new planes, Samsung, Hyundai Motor vow extra spending

WASHINGTON, D.C. – South Korea’s biggest conglomerates have committed $150 billion in fresh investment in the US in a sweeping package t...

BOK unlikely to get ahead of the curve to cut rates before US Fed: KED economists

The Bank of Korea will likely leave its policy rate unchanged at 2.5% at Thursday’s rate review meeting due to concerns over financial stabili...

Korean tycoons head to US to support summit; Samsung likely to unveil fresh investment

The heads of South Korea’s largest conglomerates are heading to the US to support a Seoul-Washington summit, with investors watching closely f...

STIC Investments set to acquire laundry chain Cleantopia

STIC Investments Inc., a Seoul-based private equity firm, is set to acquire Cleantopia, South Korea’s largest laundry service franchise operat...

Korea tightens curbs on foreign homebuyers with new permit system amid speculation fears

South Korea will impose sweeping restrictions on foreign property transactions across the Seoul Metropolitan Area, citing concerns over speculative ...

NH gains most in Korea’s first-half IB league; Meritz emerges as fast-rising challenger

South Korea’s investment banking hierarchy is in flux after the country’s leading brokerages reported sharply divergent earnings perform...

AWS, Upstage deepen ties in AI drive across Asia-Pacific, US

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has reinforced its partnership with South Korean artificial intelligence startup Upstage, backing the company with a minor...

Mastern Investment puts 13 E-Mart outlets up for sale in package deal

Mastern Investment Management Co., a Seoul-based real estate investment firm, is putting 13 E-Mart Inc. outlets it acquired from the South Korean re...

Korea Investment Partners invests $10 million in Elon Musk’s SpaceX

Korea Investment Partners Co. (KIP), one of South Korea’s largest venture capital and private equity firms, has invested $10 million in Elon M...

Celltrion in talks to buy Eli Lilly plant in US for $504 million

Celltrion Inc., South Korea’s biosimilar-developing leader, is in talks with Eli Lilly and Company to buy the American multinational pharmaceu...

Trump’s chip tariff threat stirs jitters; impact on Samsung, SK Hynix limited given MFN status

NEW YORK – A revived threat from US President Donald Trump to impose a 100% tariff on imported semiconductors has reignited concerns in South ...

Global investment banks raise S.Korea’s growth forecasts as trade tensions with US ease

Global investment banks are revising up their growth forecasts for South Korea, citing easing trade uncertainties and signs of a consumer-led recove...

Millennium Management to invest $252 mn in Korean stocks for first time

Millennium Management LLC, a US major hedge fund, is set to invest about $252 million in South Korean stocks for the first time, local asset managem...

Korean Air to launch premium economy at lower prices than rivals

Korean Air Lines Co., South Korea’s top full-service carrier, on Tuesday unveiled a plan to introduce a premium economy class in September at ...

Woori Investment's IPO market entry set to intensify SME underwriting rivalry

Woori Investment & Securities Co. has launched an initial public offering-dedicated unit within its corporate finance division in its foray into...

ASK Singapore 2025 to offer rare insights into Korean investment landscape

South Korea’s leading private equity and venture capital firms will convene in Singapore on Oct. 27 for ASK Singapore 2025 (sg.kedask.com), wh...

Samsung eyes earnings recovery in H2 on higher HBM sales

Samsung Electronics Co. expects its earnings to recover in the second half of this year, banking on rising demand for its premium high-bandwidth mem...

AMCHAM, ECCK warn S.Korea’s labor bill hinders investment

Major foreign business associations in South Korea have warned that a proposed labor law revision in the country could increase legal exposure for m...

Samsung Chairman Lee heads to US as chips become key trade leverage

Samsung Electronics Co. Chairman Lee Jae-yong departed for the US on Tuesday, just days before the US-set  Aug. 1 deadline for a trade deal, si...

Korea Investment & Securities, Muzinich & Co. explore strategic partnership on global credit portfolio

Korea Investment & Securities Co. (KIS), the brokerage unit of Korea Investment Holding Co., is exploring a strategic partnership with US privat...

S.Korea to expand growth fund to $110 bn to nurture 'Korean Nvidia'

South Korea is considering creating a 150 trillion won ($110 billion) national fund to support high-tech industries as part of President Lee Jae-myu...

Bain Capital set to acquire HS Hyosung Advanced Materials' tire cord business

US private investment firm Bain Capital is poised to acquire HS Hyosung Advanced Materials Corp.'s tire steel cord business in a deal estimated...

Kayne Anderson Real Estate: Don't wait for clarity – the time to invest is now

Amid persistent economic uncertainty, rising development costs, and shifting US trade policies, Kayne Anderson Real Estate is showing high convictio...

President Lee meets with Samsung chief amid stalled US-Korea trade talks

South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung met with Samsung Electronics Co. Chairman Lee Jae-yong on Thursday amid growing speculation that Seoul may leve...

TPG’s sale of cosmetics packaging specialist Samhwa to KKR: A textbook turnaround story

Global private equity firm TPG has struck one of this year’s standout mid-cap deals in South Korea, selling Samhwa Co., a cosmetics packaging ...