SEOUL, June 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean central bank on Monday lifted restrictions on local institutions investing in foreign currency-denominated bonds issued for domestic use, known as kimchi bonds, in an effort to improve foreign exchange liquidity, officials said. Under the new measure, foreign exchange institutions, including foreign exchange banks, securities firms and [...]
SEOUL, June 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The Bank of Korea (BOK) has put the second phase of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot program on hold, signaling mounting pressure from commercial banks and a shifting digital finance landscape increasingly shaped by stablecoin developments. The abrupt pause, disclosed in a virtual meeting with participating banks [...]
SEOUL, June 27 (Korea Bizwire) — The financial authorities’ latest measures to restrict ballooning household debt are expected to help cool down the overheated housing market in Seoul’s sought-out areas, experts said Friday. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced earlier in the day that all local lenders will be forced to sharply lower their household [...]
SEOUL, June 26 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s central bank said Thursday it will sell up to 7.2 trillion won (US$5.31 billion) worth of monetary stabilization bonds (MSBs) in July. The planned issuance represents a 600 billion-won increase from a month earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). As policy tools devised to absorb [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s financial regulator said Thursday it will review the introduction of tighter rules on so-called jeonse loans amid rising household debts. In a report to the State Affairs Planning Committee, the de facto transition team of the new Lee Jae Myung administration, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said [...]
SEOUL, June 19 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s internet-only lender Kakao Bank said Thursday it has received approval from the Thai government to operate a “virtual bank,” marking the first reentry of a Korean bank into the Thai market in 25 years. The Thai Ministry of Finance recently selected a consortium formed by Kakao Bank [...]
SEOUL, June 11 (Korea Bizwire) – Household loans extended by South Korean banks rose sharply in May, central bank data showed Wednesday, driven by an increase in housing transactions. Banks’ outstanding household loans stood at 1,155.3 trillion won (US$845.07 billion) as of end-May, up 5.2 trillion won from a month earlier, according to the data [...]
SEOUL, June 4 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s banking industry is calling on the incoming administration to open the door for greater involvement in the digital asset space and non-financial sectors, while also seeking regulatory reforms in investment advisory services, trust systems, and enforcement transparency. According to banking officials on June 3, the Korea Federation [...]
SEOUL, May 22 (Korea Bizwire) – In an unusual move underscoring the strategic importance of South Korea’s digital currency initiatives, Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong has personally visited the heads of the country’s major commercial banks, urging their active participation in two key central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot projects. According to industry sources, Rhee [...]
SEOUL, May 20 (Korea Bizwire) — Internet-only K-Bank is again seeking to go public after previously delaying or nixing its initial public offering (IPO) plans on three occasions, industry sources said Tuesday. In October, the company said it would postpone its IPO till early this year, citing low demand from investors. In January, the bank [...]