SEOUL, Sept. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — The richest people in South Korea earned nearly 1,000 times more than the lowest wage earners last year, a parliamentary report said Sunday, highlighting the country’s widening income disparity. The average earned income of the top 0.1 percent bracket reached 660 million won (US$590,000) per person last year, according [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Korea Bizwire) — A new measure will require consumers to be provided with information of sudden changes in returns for variable life insurance funds via text message. The measure comes as critics have condemned the lack of information regarding fund returns, making it difficult for consumers to take active countermeasures. The Financial [...]
SEOUL, Jun. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb, said Wednesday it lost 35 billion won (US$31.5 million) worth of cryptocurrencies in a hacking attack, highlighting concerns that cryptocurrency exchanges are vulnerable to cyber attacks. The theft took place between Tuesday night and dawn on Wednesday, Bithumb said in a statement. Bithumb [...]
SEOUL, Apr. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — Telemarketers selling insurance over the phone will now have to pace their explanations at a certain speed to ensure consumer protection, one of many other new measures crafted by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The FSS, drawing upon the expertise of external professionals to identify 177 specific tasks, created [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — A country with high household debt that raises key interest rates can be affected by a drop in total demand and consumption, a report said Friday. “We’ve found that key interest rate hikes have a great impact on the economic adjustment in a country which has a high degree [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 27 (Korea Bizwire) — More than three out of every 10 South Korean workers have invested in cryptocurrencies to make a quick buck, a recent survey showed Wednesday. Of the 941 salaried people questioned, 31.3 percent have invested in virtual currencies, according to the survey conducted by online job portal Saramin. The average [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — Hyundai Development Company is converting to a holding company through a major structure reshuffle. At a board meeting held on Tuesday, plans were announced to divide the current structure of HDC into two, including a holding company and a separate operating company with official names yet to be determined. Through [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 27 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s financial regulator said Sunday it will require first-tier banks to implement a stricter rule for mortgage lending in the fourth quarter of next year, in a fresh bid to better manage growing household debt. Currently, people’s repayment ability for home mortgages is calculated on a ratio that [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 1 (Korea Bizwire) – Members of the Korea Financial Investment Association (KFIA) gathered in Seoul’s Yeouido financial district on October 31 to announce the test run launch of “Chain ID”, an identification system built on blockchain technology that was described by KFIA Chairman Hwang Young-key as “the world’s first successful attempt in commercializing [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 11 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea ranked 22nd in the per capita net financial assets among 53 major economies last year, a report said Wednesday. The average South Korean had 28,180 euros in financial assets including cash, bank deposits, stocks, insurance and pensions last year, according to a global wealth report by the [...]