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Nov 26, 2019
- FSC Chairman Speaks on Importance of Innovation in Movable Asset-based Financing
- FSC Chairman Eun Sung-soo visited a peer-to-peer lending firm Popfunding on November 26, and held talks on promoting innovative financial solutions through movable asset-based financing.During the talks, Chairman Eun stated that the traditional lending practice centered on real estate has begun to change due to government efforts to facilitate the development of financial products which recognize movables as collateral. Merely two years ago, movable asset-based financing remained unfamiliar. However, banks have set up a movable collateral management system using Internet-of-Things (IoT) as they led innovative initiatives in this field.As a result, the amount of movable asset-based loans rapidly increased from KRW735.5 billion at the end of last year to more than KRW1.2 trillion at the end of September 2019.Moreover, Chairman Eun emphasized that due to innovative ideas in movable asset-based financing, new solutions have emerged which would have been unlikely in the past. For instance, inventory as collateral has received relatively low attention compared to machinery or intellectual property due to difficulties in assessment and management. However, with movable asset-based financing, Popfunding began to offer e-commerce firms not only business loans at low to medium interest rates but also systematic inventory management and warehouse services.Chairman Eun said that more innovative solutions should be introduced in the field of movable asset-based financing in order to facilitate start-ups and SMEs.The government has announced a revision to the Act on Security over Movable Assets and Receivables on November 5, and plans to set up an organization that supports redemption of movable collateral in the first half of 2020.* Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Nov 19, 2019
- Financial Cooperation in ASEAN Region
- BACKGROUNDASEAN is a large market which has achieved remarkable economic growth with its growing population. The population of the region is expected to rise to around 688 million by 2024. In the financial sector, Korea and ASEAN countries have made an effort to establish strategic partnership to promote economic and financial growth in ASEAN region.Korea has focused on enhancing financial cooperation with ASEAN by supporting Korean companies’ business operation in the region and promoting partnership in developing financial infrastructure.FEATURES OF FINANCIAL COOPERATION IN ASEAN REGION I. EXPECTATIONS OF HIGH PROFITSAs ASEAN has high growth potential, many companies and institutions in the financial sector are willing to expand their business in the region. In fact, as of June, 2019, the number of subsidiaries and branches opened by Korean financial firms reached 150 in ASEAN region, including Indonesia and Vietnam, rose 92% compared to the end of 2011. The asset of overseas subsidiaries and branches in ASEAN region accounts for 14% of the total asset; however, the profits account for 30% of the total profits.Subsidiaries and branches of Korean banks in ASEAN region have higher Return on Asset (ROA) compared to the banks in domestic market.II. DIVERSIFICATION OF OVERSEAS BUSINESS Korean financial firms diversify their overseas business by establishing non-bank financial institutions and investing in shares of non-banking financial firms in the region.For example, Shinhan bank started banking business in ASEAN region, and then it expanded their business into other financial services, including credit card, financial investment and consumer finance. This strategy helped the financial firm to advance into new markets by creating synergy effects among affiliates. III. LOCALIZATION Korean financial firms accelerate their expansion by establishing more subsidiaries than offices or branches. In the process of localization, Korean financial firms tend to consider the e
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Nov 14, 2019
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Oct 31, 2019
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Oct 29, 2019
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Jul 18, 2019
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Jun 25, 2019
- Government to Complete Privatization of Woori Financial Group by 2022
- The FSC announced its plan to sell the remaining 18.3% stake in Woori Financial Group (WFG), owned by the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC), from 2020 to 2022.BACKGROUNDIn the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis in 1998, the government injected KRW12.8 trillion to bail out five financial institutions, which later turned into WFG. Since then, the government has redeemed KRW11.1 trillion, or 87.3% of the injected public funds.The government still remains as the largest shareholder of WFG with the remaining 18.3% stake owned by KDIC, prompting market uncertainty and concerns that the complete privatization of WFG might be delayed.Against the backdrop, the FSC intends to ease market uncertainty and concerns by presenting its roadmap for the sale of the remaining stake in WFG, which includes specific timelines and methods.ROADMAP FOR SALE OF REMAINING STAKE IN WFG1. TimelinesKDIC will sell its remaining stake in WFG through two or three rounds of sale over the next three years from 2020 to 2022.In principle, sale will be proceeding in one-year intervals over the next three years. The amount of shares put up for sale in each round will not exceed 10%, given market demand.The government aims to complete the sale of its remaining stake by 2022.2. MethodsFor each round of sale, maximum 10% of shares will be sold through competitive bidding first. If shares fail to be sold at auctions, then they will be sold through a bloc sale with a maximum 5% for each round of sale.
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Apr 24, 2019
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Dec 19, 2018
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Nov 14, 2018
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Jul 17, 2018
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Jul 12, 2018
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Apr 04, 2018
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Mar 23, 2018
- Mandatory Disclosure of Corporate Governance to be Phased in from 2019
- The FSC and KRX plan to introduce mandatory disclosure of corporate governance into Kospi-listed companies with total asset value of more than KRW 2 trillion, starting from 2019, and phase it into all Kospi-listed companies over the next two years.BackgroundKorea introduced the “comply or explain” approach for corporate governance disclosure in March 2017, in which, on a voluntary basis, companies either comply with corporate governance principles, or explain publicly why if they do not comply.However, the voluntary disclosure has revealed some limitations including low participation of companies and poor quality of disclosed information, making it difficult to provide market participants with sufficient information about corporate governance such as a company’s decision-making structure and internal controls.Against this backdrop, the FSC came up with its plan to improve listed companies’ disclosure of corporate governance, based on discussions with relevant institutions including the KRX and the results of a survey conducted on listed companies.Key changes1. Mandatory disclosure of corporate governanceStarting from 2019, Kospi-listed companies with total asset value of more than KRW 2 trillion will be required to mandatorily disclose their corporate governance. The FSC considers expanding the mandatory disclosure to all Kospi-listed companies starting from 2021.※ The FSC is also considering introducing mandatory disclosure of corporate governance toKosdaq-listed companies. Details including the timing of introduction are left for further discussions.2. Guidelines on corporate governance disclosureTo improve the quality of disclosed information, guidelines will be provided to specify details of corporate governance principles that corporate governance reports must entail. That will enable investors to compare corporate governance information among listed companies and provide stakeholders with more useful information.※ The guidelines will be set out by
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Mar 15, 2018
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Feb 01, 2018
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Nov 21, 2017
- The 4th UK-Korea Financial Cooperation Forum Held in Seoul
- The Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) hosted the fourth UK-Korea Financial Forum in Seoul today with the UK Treasury, the Financial Conduct Agency (FCA) and the British Embassy. The annual event, which took place alternately in London and Seoul since 2014, has served as an occasion to deepen cooperation between the UK and Korean financial regulators and expand business opportunities for both countries’ financial companies.This year’s forum focused on new challenges facing financial services sectors in both countries: falling fertility rates, ageing population and evolving technology. These changes will bring opportunities as well as threats to the financial sector. In this context, topics of this year’s forum included “the Future of the Insurance and Pension Industries” and “How to Promote Innovation in Financial Services.” The forum was attended by Korean and UK officials, financial companies and fintech businesses.In his opening speech, Choi JongKu, Chairman of the FSC said, “The UK has traditionally been a leader in finance and continues to lead in recent trends including fintech, which provides useful policy implications for Korea.” He also stressed the importance of continued cooperation in dealing with new risks that might come from the development of digital finance.In the following session, Andrew Bailey, Chief Executive Officer of the FCA delivered a speech titled “Public Policy Challenges for Consumer Protection Regulators.” In his speech, Mr. Bailey shared the findings and policy implications from the Ageing Population Project, which the FCA launched in February in 2016 to explore how the ageing population would impact the financial services industry. He emphasized the role of financial regulators needs to evolve, corresponding to changes in financial services with ageing population.On the sidelines of the forum, FSC Chairman Choi JongKu held a meeting with UK officials including K
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Apr 13, 2017
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Nov 13, 2016
- Seven Investors Were Picked to Buy Government's Stake in Woori Bank
- *Please read the attached file for details.The government decided to sell its 29.7% stake in Woori Bank to seven investors on its fifth attempt to privatize Woori Bank since 2010. The seven final winning bidders and amount of shares auctioned to each bidder are as follows: Investors % of auctioned shares1 Eugene Asset Management 4.0%2 Hanwha Life Insurance Co., Ltd. 4.0%3 IMM Private Equity, Inc. 6.0%4 Kiwoom Securities Co., Ltd. 4.0%5 Korea Investment Securities Co., Ltd. 4.0%6 Mirae Asset Global Investments Co., Ltd. 3.7%7 Tongyang Life Insurance Co., Ltd. 4.0%The government would recoup KRW 2.4 trillion from this sale, recovering a total of KRW 10.6 trillion out of KRW 12.8 trillion, which is 83.4% of the public funds injected into Woori Bank. We will continue our effort to sell the remaining 21.4% in Woori Bank for a full recovery of the public funds. The sale will be closed in mid-December this year. The Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) will terminate its MOU with Woori, signed for helping normalizing the bank’s business operation, as soon as the sale is closed, to guarantee the new shareholders autonomy in the bank’s management.
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Sep 26, 2016