Digital Asset Basic Act

Central bank BOK chief warns against aggressive policy rate cuts, sees need for stimulus

Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong on Thursday signaled a cautious approach to monetary easing, warning that excessive interest rate cuts could ...

Alternative investments Koramco targets $7 bn bet on Korea data centers

Koramco Asset Management Co., South Korea’s leading real estate investment firm, plans to invest 10 trillion won ($7 billion) in domestic data...

Shareholder activism Proxy voting rises in South Korea, but few vetoes cast

An increasing number of asset management firms in South Korea are more frequently exercising their voting rights at portfolio companies. Nevertheles...

Cryptocurrencies World Vision becomes 1st Korean corporate entity to trade crypto

Non-government organization World Vision Korea has sold its Ethereum holdings, becoming the first Korean legal entity to trade crypto after the Sout...

Infrastructure Korea Post to commit $150 mn to mid-cap infrastructure funds

Korea Post will commit $150 million to one or two global asset managers for mid-cap infrastructure equity investments, the postal service agency sai...

Pension funds NPS to lift stock holdings to 55% by 2030, raising risk appetite

The National Pension Service (NPS) plans to raise its equity allocation to about 55% of its assets by 2030 from 40.4% as of the end of February, Sou...

Korean food Ramen, ready-to-eat meals lead 10% rise in 2024 K-food exports

South Korea’s food exports climbed 10% on-year to $7.26 billion in 2024, led by ramen, ready-to-eat meals and seasoned seaweed, according to g...

Real estate Cushman & Wakefield, Avison Young to lead Orange Center sale in Seoul

Cushman & Wakefield and Avison Young have been appointed to oversee the sale of Orange Center, a prime office tower in Seoul’s central bus...

ASK 2025 Rental housing gains appeal amid supply crunch: asset managers

The rental housing markets in the US, Europe and Australia present attractive investment opportunities as persistent supply shortages and rising urb...

ASK 2025 NPS, KIC step up focus on mid-market infrastructure

The National Pension Service (NPS) and Korea Investment Corp. (KIC) are actively exploring mid-market infrastructure opportunities as they are expec...

Mergers & Acquisitions Kakao Pay in talks to acquire SSG.COM’s SSG Pay and Gmarket’s Smile Pay

Kakao Pay Corp., the mobile payment and digital wallet service unit of South Korean tech giant Kakao Corp., is in advanced negotiations to acquire t...

Asset management Mirae Asset Global Investments’ AUM tops $288 bn as global push pays off

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. now manages more than 400 trillion won ($288 billion) in assets for the first time since its first global venture...

Real estate Seoul’s prime office transactions rise 6% in Q1 despite weak sentiment

Despite mounting economic headwinds and heightened investor caution, the prime office market in Seoul posted a modest recovery in the first quarter,...

Banking & Finance Shinhan Securities acquires stake in Vietnam’s top trading platform FireAnt

Shinhan Securities Co., a leading South Korean brokerage house, has acquired a strategic equity stake in FireAnt, Vietnam’s largest retail tra...

Korean startups Korea's science ministry picks 10 AI, digital startups to back global growth

South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT on Thursday announced that it has selected 10 startups founded by Koreans in a program to support th...

Corporate strategy SK Group seeks to sell SK Signet as part of sweeping portfolio realignment

South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate SK Group is seeking to divest SK Signet Inc., four years after acquiring the EV charger manufacturin...

Pension funds NPS yet to schedule external manager selection; PE firms’ fundraising woes deepen

South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS), the world’s third-largest pension fund, has yet to decide on a plan to select local extern...

K-pop K-pop stocks surge as China set to loosen cultural ban after 9 years

Shares in South Korea’s leading entertainment companies are rallying amid growing signs that China will likely lift its longstanding ban on Ko...

Real estate Mirae Asset to be named Korea Post’s core real estate fund operator

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. is set to manage the mandate of more than 600 billion won ($416.8 million) in core real estate fund investment by...

Business & Politics US tariffs add risk premium to dollar assets: Maurice Obstfeld

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The US tariff increases are adding risk premiums to dollar-denominated assets, undermining the dollar’s role as a glo...

Asset management Mirae Asset bets on China as Korean investors’ US focus draws concern

South Korea’s leading asset manager Mirae Asset Financial Group is increasingly unveiling China-focused investment products as Chairman P...

Earnings Kia maintains double-digit margin in Q1 with record revenue

Kia Corp., South Korea’s second-largest automaker, extended its double-digit profit margin streak to a 10th consecutive quarter, posting recor...

Corporate strategy Samsung seeks tech alliance with top US universities for robotics, AI, 6G

In an ambitious bid to shape the future of technology, Samsung Electronics Co. is launching a sweeping initiative to collaborate with elite North Am...

Real estate Ritz-Carlton to return to Seoul, tapped by IGIS Asset for landmark project

IGIS Asset Management Co., South Korea’s leading real estate investment firm, has named The Ritz-Carlton the preferred hotel brand for its amb...

Asset management Mirae Asset’s default option retirement funds top $700 mn in assets

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. now manages over one-third of South Korea’s default-option retirement funds, with the assets it operates un...

Pension funds NPS gears up for investment overhaul with boost in risk assets

South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS), the country’s largest institutional investor, is set to overhaul its investment strategy w...

Real estate Colliers to lead $689 million sale of IGIS Asset-owned Signature Tower

Colliers Korea, a unit of global real estate asset management group Colliers, has been chosen as the adviser for the sale of Signature Tower in cent...

Business & Politics S.Korea's Han, Trump discuss transactional diplomacy in 1st direct talks

South Korea’s Acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo spoke with US President Donald Trump on Tuesday to discuss various issues of mu...

Asset management Strong momentum in non-US markets, digital real estate: Principal AM CEO

It is time to shift focus toward non-US markets after years of stellar performance of US assets driven by the robust world’s No. 1 economy, sa...

Business & Politics Samsung's Lee meets with Xi amid Beijing’s balancing act vs Washington

Samsung Electronics Co. Chairman Lee Jae-yong, along with other global tech leaders, met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday as C...