SEOUL, Jan. 11 (Korea Bizwire) — The government will give tax breaks to individuals that invest in mutual funds for startups and soften some listing rules for the junior KOSDAQ stock market, officials said Thursday. The move is part of a new policy move to boost the KOSDAQ market and help smaller firms raise funds [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — Of all banknotes in circulation in South Korea last year, 50,000 won (US$46.70) bills accounted for just over 80 percent of the total value, as demand for the largest-denominated note jumped, according to the central bank Tuesday. There was 85.5 trillion won worth of outstanding 50,000 won notes in [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s financial regulators have inspected banks that have opened virtual accounts for corporate customers amid concerns that such accounts could be exploited as a loophole to attract new investors for cryptocurrencies, an official said Wednesday. Regulators have banned banks from offering virtual accounts, which are needed to sell [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — Applications for mobile payments and money transfers marked the biggest growth in the smartphone app market last year, data provided by Nielsen Korea showed Tuesday. Five of the top 10 apps from January to November last year were those referred to as fintech, short for financial technology, apps. Toss, [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Korea Bizwire) – Bitcoin prices on South Korean exchanges have risen today despite hints at government regulation, and a drop in the value of the cryptocurrency in other markets. According to cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb, the price per bitcoin reached 24.7 million won as of 2:30 p.m. today, up 1.4 percent after financial [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Korea Bizwire) – Household debt in South Korea is growing at one of the fastest rates among OECD countries, which could be a serious threat to quality of life in the future. According to the OECD’s ‘How’s Life? 2017’ report, the debt-to-disposable income ratio of South Korean households was 170 percent as [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwire) – Drugmaker Celltrion Inc.’s stock has made significant gains in recent days, surpassing Hyundai Motor Co. in terms of market value, data showed Monday. Celltrion shares jumped 55.12 percent over the past 7 trading sessions to 302,500 won (US$283.29) on Monday closing, pushing the company’s capitalization to a record 37.1 trillion won. Hyundai Motor’s market capitalization stood at 33.2 trillion won as of Monday closing. Celltrion’s [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwire) — The head of a biotech venture firm has emerged as the fourth-richest man in stock holdings in South Korea, industry data showed Sunday, amid a bio venture boom in Asia’s fourth-biggest economy. The value of stocks held by Seo Jung-jin, chairman of biopharmaceutical firm Celltrion Inc., rose to 5.39 [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwie) — The PyeongChang Winter Olympics will only accept Visa credit cards for purchases of tickets, souvenirs and other goods at the games venues, officials said Sunday, a move that could cause inconvenience for people who use other cards. Visa enjoys the exclusive right to be the only credit card that [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s increase of the minimum wage will boost private spending, which in turn can help Asia’s fourth-largest economy break from its low growth trend, a senior government official said Friday. In July last year, the country decided to raise its minimum wage by 16 percent to 7,530 won [...]