Korea Investment & Securities, UBP seek private banking partnership

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

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...

South Korean airlines bank on China routes for profit recovery

South Korean airlines bank on China routes for profit recovery

South Korean airlines are ramping up international routes, particularly to China, Japan and Southeast Asian countries, in a bid to boost profitabili...

BOK chief warns household debt near tipping point, keeps rates steady

BOK chief warns household debt near tipping point, keeps rates steady

Rhee Chang-yong, governor of the Bank of Korea (BOK), warned on Thursday that mounting household debt is now undermining both private consumption an...

K Shipbuilding up for sale as Korean shipyards ride new boom

K Shipbuilding up for sale as Korean shipyards ride new boom

K Shipbuilding Co., a mid-tier South Korean shipbuilder, will be put on the market this month after a strong turnaround. The deal, estimated at 500 ...

Gochujang, fiery seasonings: K-sauces go viral among adventurous foreign palates

Gochujang, fiery seasonings: K-sauces go viral among adventurous foreign palates

Once an afterthought in the global food trade, South Korea’s signature spices and sauces, ranging from fiery gochujang to fermented doenjang, ...

Hanwha acquires Indonesian bank, first foreign banking venture by Korean insurer

Hanwha acquires Indonesian bank, first foreign banking venture by Korean insurer

Hanwha Life Insurance Co. has become the first South Korean insurance firm to advance into the overseas banking sector by securing a controlling sta...

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...

South Korean eyewear poised to spark next global K-wave

South Korean eyewear poised to spark next global K-wave

As eyewear evolves into a key fashion statement, South Korea’s homegrown brands are setting their sights on the global stage with bold, unconv...

S.Korea eases path for foreign REITs in senior housing push

S.Korea eases path for foreign REITs in senior housing push

South Korea, grappling with a fast-aging population, has relaxed development and ownership rules for senior housing, opening the sector to foreign h...

Jollibee to buy chicken chain Norang Tongdak amid global K-food frenzy

Jollibee to buy chicken chain Norang Tongdak amid global K-food frenzy

Jollibee Foods Corp., a household name in Southeast Asia’s food market, has been named the preferred buyer of Norang Tongdak, a South Korean f...

Seoul, once-rising art hub, feels pinch of global strains  

Seoul, once-rising art hub, feels pinch of global strains  

In Seoul’s Hannam district, the storefront that once housed Various Small Fires (VSF) now sits empty, a “For Rent” sign taped to i...

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, ...

Shinhan expands global IR push to woo foreign investors

Shinhan expands global IR push to woo foreign investors

Shinhan Financial Group Co. is stepping up efforts to attract foreign investors with back-to-back global investor relations (IR) campaigns, as South...

NPS logs 0.87% return from first-quarter investment

NPS logs 0.87% return from first-quarter investment

The National Pension Service (NPS), South Korea’s state-run pension fund and the country’s largest institutional investor, announced on ...

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...

Samsung Biologics drives foreign lead in Korea’s biotech supply chain

Samsung Biologics drives foreign lead in Korea’s biotech supply chain

A surge in orders from Samsung Biologics Co., the world’s largest contract drugmaker, has propelled South Korea to the forefront of global rev...

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...

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...

Korean financial firms launch global IR blitz to woo foreign capital  

Korean financial firms launch global IR blitz to woo foreign capital  

Chiefs of South Korea’s major financial groups – Shinhan, Woori and iM – are ramping up global investor outreach with new sharehol...

Korea’s aesthetic medicine enjoys golden era with surge in foreign spending

Korea’s aesthetic medicine enjoys golden era with surge in foreign spending

As beauty-conscious tourists continue to flock to Seoul’s clinics, South Korea’s aesthetic medicine sector may be entering a golden era,...

Korea Securities Finance eyes its 1st foreign bond sale in 2026

Korea Securities Finance eyes its 1st foreign bond sale in 2026

Korea Securities Finance Corp. (KSFC) is preparing to issue its first foreign currency-denominated bonds in 2026 to provide low-cost funding to dome...

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...

When in S. Korea, it’s a ritual: Foreigners make stops at CU, GS25, 7-Eleven

When in S. Korea, it’s a ritual: Foreigners make stops at CU, GS25, 7-Eleven

“If you’re going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair,” as Scott McKenzie sang in the late 1960s and 70s.If...

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...

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...

Kakao Pay backs out of acquisition deal for SSG Pay, Smile Pay Hanwha in talks to buy five-star hotel Paraspara Seoul Kia's Lego-like PV5 with 16 variants to hit market in July Stray Kids make K-pop history with landmark stadium show in Germany S.Korea’s most prominent business leader returns with all charges cleared