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Jun 21, 2023
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Jun 15, 2023
- FSC Holds Financial Cooperation Forum with Thailand and Attends IOSCO Annual Meeting
- The Financial Services Commission held the Korea-Thailand Financial Cooperation Forum and attended the 48th annual meeting of the International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO) held in Bangkok, Thailand on June 12-15. Korea-Thailand Financial Cooperation Forum The FSC held the Korea-Thailand Financial Cooperation Forum with the Bank of Thailand and the Council on International Financial Cooperation on June 13. The forum was attended by about a hundred regulatory authorities and relevant officials from both countries, and the participants held discussions on (a) the current status of financial markets and banking industry in both countries and (b) ways to increase bilateral cooperation on financial innovation and development. At the forum, Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) Standing Commissioner Kim Jeong-kag of the FSC delivered congratulatory remarks and talked about the importance of bilateral cooperation between the two countries. In his speech, Standing Commissioner Kim said that Koreas experience with online-only banks, open banking and financial MyData services can offer valuable examples regarding digital transformation of the financial sector and that Korean financial institutions are very much willing to participate and contribute to Thailands virtual banking initiative. IOSCO Annual Meeting The FSC and the FSS attended the 48th IOSCO annual meeting held on June 12-15. At this years meeting, the member countries held discussions on various capital market issues such as sustainable finance, managing fund liquidity risks, private equity financing, leveraged loans and collateralized loan obligations (CLOs). Regarding the issue of the IOSCO Board officially endorsing the sustainability disclosure standards prepared by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), the Korean delegation agreed with the suggestion for endorsement in principle but added that due to different regulatory and industry preparation in each member country, th
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Jun 09, 2023
- Household Loans, May 2023
- The outstanding balance of household loans (preliminary) across all financial sectors went up KRW2.8 trillion in May 2023, which rose for the second consecutive month. Financial authorities will closely monitor trends in household debt and work to ensure stable management of household loans. (Overall) Household loans across all financial sectors rose KRW2.8 trillion in May 2023, but the year-on-year growth rate edged down 1.4 percent, showing a continuous trend of declining balance on year since November 2021. (By Type) Mortgage loans grew at a faster pace for the third consecutive month and other types of loans declined at a slower rate for three month in a row. Mortgage loans went up KRW3.6 trillion, despite a decline of KRW0.6 trillion in the nonbanking sector, as banks saw an increase of KRW4.3 trillion. Other types of loans fell KRW0.8 trillion as both the banking and nonbanking sectors saw a drop of KRW0.02 trillion and KRW0.8 trillion each. (By Sector) Household loans rose in the banking sector but fell in the nonbanking sector. Household loans in the banking sector increased KRW4.2 trillion in May, edging up for the second straight month. Mortgage loans from banks grew KRW4.3 trillion, despite a drop in jeonse loans (down KRW0.6 trillion), as the volume of policy mortgage loans (up KRW2.8 trillion), general individual mortgage loans (up KRW2.0 trillion) and group lending for new apartment subscription (up KRW0.1 trillion) increased. Other types of loans in the banking sector declined (down KRW0.02 trillion) at a slower pace compared to a month ago (down KRW0.5 trillion) as credit loans expanded from a fall in the previous month (down KRW0.6 trillionup KRW0.03 trillion). Nonbanks saw a drop of KRW1.4 trillion in household loans with slight increases in the insurance (up KRW0.4 trillion) and specialized credit finance (up KRW0.4 trillion) sectors but declines in mutual finance (down KRW2.2 trillion) and savings banks (down KRW0.03 trillion). The pace of declin
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Jun 08, 2023
- KRX Derivatives Market to Open 15 Minutes Early Starting from July 31
- Financial authorities announced that the derivatives market, which currently opens at the same hour as stock markets, will open fifteen minutes early at 8:45 am beginning on July 31. The Financial Services Commission, the Financial Supervisory Service and the Korea Exchange announced the plan at a seminar held on the topic of strengthening the global competitiveness of financial investment business on June 8. The need and the plan for early opening was discussed at the second such seminar held in April this year. At that time, FSC Vice Chairman Kim So-young said that the derivatives markets early opening will help ease price volatility in stock market at opening hours and improve global consistency. Since its launch in 1996, the opening hour for derivatives market has remained the same as the opening hour of stock markets. Prices determined in the derivatives market reflect various expectations from market participants about the future prices of underlying assets (price discovery function). However, unlike in overseas markets, Korea has the same opening hour for both the spot market and futures market, which has made it difficult for stock investors to discover prices of derivatives products during the early hours of stock trading sessions. Also, due to the same opening hour, price volatility has been high in stock market especially at the time of market opening (for about fifteen minutes) as adjustments needed to take place in the futures market prior to the stock market opening are directly reflected in stock prices. In this regard, to help ease stock markets early-hour price volatility, financial authorities and the KRX plan to move up the derivatives markets opening hour fifteen minutes from 9:00 am currently to 8:45 am in line with international standards. Thus, the normal trading hours will be extended by fifteen minutes (from 9:00~15:45 currently to 8:45~15:45) and the single-price auction hours will be reduced by fifteen minutes (from 8:30~9:00 currently to
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May 31, 2023
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May 22, 2023
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May 18, 2023
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May 16, 2023
- FSC Vice Chairman to Visit Central Asia to Support Overseas Expansion of Domestic Financial Companies
- FSC Vice Chairman Kim So-young will visit Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan from May 16 to 19 in order to help strengthen cooperation with the Central Asian countries and provide support for domestic financial institutions to expand their businesses overseas. In March this year, the FSC set up a new organization (Financial Industry Globalization Taskforce) charged with providing support for expansion of domestic financial institutions overseas business activities. The taskforce has held a series of seminars and talks with financial sectors to listen to their comments and suggestions. In this regard, Vice Chairman Kims visit to the Central Asian countries is a significant step forward to strengthen support for domestic financial companies overseas business activities. This year marks the 31st anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and the Central Asian countries. Last year, the 15th Korea-Central Asia Cooperation Forum was held and close relationship has been maintained between Korea and the region in a variety of areas ranging from health care, digitalization, tourism, environment and economic security. Recently, the trade volume between Korea and the region also grew more than twofold in the past four years. However, the degree of exchange and cooperation in financial sector has remained limited thus far. In this regard, FSC Vice Chairman Kims visit this time will serve as a turning point in boosting exchange and cooperation in financial sector. Central Asia has abundant mineral and energy resources with high potential for growth. As the five Central Asian countries are seeking to advance and digitalize their financial industries, the FSC expects that Korean financial companies will be able to make significant contributions as they are equipped with ample experience in developing digital infrastructures. In this regard, the visit to Central Asia this time will set a stepping stone for expanding opportunities in the future.
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May 11, 2023
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Apr 24, 2023
- FSC and KAI Participate in First Meeting of Sustainability Standards Advisory Forum
- The FSC and the Korea Accounting Institute (KAI) participated in the first meeting of the Sustainability Standards Advisory Forum (SSAF), an official advisory body of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), on April 17 in Frankfurt, Germany. At the first meeting, members discussed the progress in the development of the IFRS S1 (general sustainability-related disclosure requirements) and S2 (climate-related disclosure requirements), future standards setting priorities and the connectivity and compatibility between the ISSBs sustainability disclosure standards and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB)s accounting standards. In March last year, the ISSB published its draft IFRS S1 and S2 and collected feedback from around the world. For crucial issues raised in the comment process, the ISSB will go through a re-deliberation before announcing financial standards at the end of June this year. The International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO) is also expected to decide whether to endorse them when the final standards are made public. The SSAFs first meeting also dealt with the areas of future standard setting priorities. The ISSB has already identified four potential projectsbiodiversity, ecosystems and ecosystem services; human capital; human rights; and integration in reportingas future standard setting priorities. In May this year, the ISSB plans to announce its agenda priorities for the next two years and seek feedback. The SSAF meeting provides an important venue for Korea to directly engage with the ISSB and other countries and strengthen international cooperation on sustainability disclosure standards. The SSAF meeting is held four times annually and the next meeting is expected to be held in July. The FSC and the KAI plan to continue to actively participate in global discussions on sustainability disclosure standards. In the meantime, authorities will also work on developing ESG disclosure standards in Korea as the ESG
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Apr 10, 2023
- Household Loans, March 2023
- In March 2023, the outstanding balance of household loansacross all financial sectors declined KRW5.0 trillion, showing a continuing trend of decline. Financial authorities will work to ensure a stable management of household debt and keep close tabs on potential risks that may be caused by high interest rates. (Overall) Household loans across all financial sectors fell KRW5.0 trillion in March 2023. The year-on-year change rate (down 1.4 percent) accelerated somewhat compared to a month ago (down 1.3 percent), showing a continuing trend of decline since the second half of last year. (By Type) Mortgage loans edged up from a decline in the previous month and other types of loans fell at a faster pace. - (Mortgage Loans) Mortgage loans rose KRW1.0 trillion with a grow in the banking sector (up KRW2.3 trillion) and a decline in the nonbanking sector (down KRW1.3 trillion). - (Other Types of Loans) Other types of loans fell KRW6.0 trillion, declining at a faster pace compared to the previous month (down KRW4.7 trillion), led by credit loans (down KRW3.2 trillion). (By Sector) Household loans edged down in both the banking and nonbanking sectors. -(Banking Sector) Household loans in the banking sector fell KRW0.7 trillion in March, declining at a slower pace compared to a month ago (down KRW2.7 trillion). Mortgage loans from banks grew KRW2.3 trillion as the volume of policy mortgage loans increased (up KRW7.4 trillion), but jeonse loans (down KRW2.3 trillion), group lending for new apartment subscription (down KRW0.9 trillion) and general individual mortgage loans (down KRW1.9 trillion) all declined. Other types of loans in the banking sector fell KRW2.9 trillion as credit loans went down KRW2.3 trillion. -(Nonbanking Sector) Nonbanks saw a drop of KRW4.4 trillion in household loans with a slight increase in insurance companies (up KRW0.4 trillion) and declines in mutual finance companies (down KRW4.0 trillion), specialized credit finance companies (down KRW0.4 trillion
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Apr 03, 2023
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Apr 03, 2023
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Mar 20, 2023
- KoFIU Unveils H2 2022 Survey Result on Virtual Asset Service Providers
- The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) conducted a survey on 36 registered virtual asset service providers (VASPs) in order to ascertain the current state of the domestic virtual asset market. Survey Overview (Respondents) 36 VASPs (27 exchange service providers and 9 other businesses) (Survey Method) Data collected from VASPs by paper surveys (Period Covered) July 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022 Key Survey Findings for H2 2022 The domestic market for virtual assets in H2 2022 was downsized significantly compared to that of H1 2022 in terms of market capitalization, trading volume, operating profits, etc.This seems to be caused by a contraction in the real economy due to interest rate and price hikes, as well as a decline in confidence following the Luna crash and the collapse of FTX. According to the survey, the amount of deposits in KRW and the number of users, which show potential investment demands in the future, both declined. Investment in the global top ten virtual assets, such as Bitcoin, handled by the KRW-based exchange service providers increased from 46 percent in H1 2022 to 57 percent in H2 2022 (up about 11 percentage points), which is greater than that in non-mainstream virtual assets. New listing of virtual assets also dropped significantly by about 72 percent compared to H1 2022, showing a tendency of VASPs conducting their operations more conservatively following the Terra-Luna crash. The newly analyzed items in the H2 2022 survey include the reason for suspending transaction (delisting of a virtual asset) and the VASPs compliance status with the travel rule.In H2 2022, the most prevalent reasons for delisting of virtual assets were in the order of project risk (50 percent), investor protection risk (22 percent) and market risk (22 percent). The amount of transactions between domestic VASPs that were subject to the travel rule amounted to KRW7.5 trillion, about 25 percent of all VASPs external transfer volume (KRW30.6 trillion) in H2 2022. The
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Mar 09, 2023
- Household Loans, February 2023
- In February 2023, the outstanding balance of household loansacross all financial sectors declined KRW5.4 trillion compared to last month (m-o-m). The year-on-year change rate also dropped at a greater level (down 1.3 percent) compared to last month (down 1.3 percent), which showed a continuing trend of decline. Financial authorities will closely monitor household debt situation to keep it at a stable level, while continuing to inspect whether there exist any risks to household debt caused by high interest rates. (Overall) Household loans across all financial sectors dropped KRW5.4 trillion in February 2023. The year-on-year change rate (down 1.3 percent) declined at a faster pace compared to the previous month (down 1.0 percent in January), showing a continuing trend of decline since the second half of last year. (By Type) Mortgage loans (m-o-m) dropped for two consecutive months, and other types of loans also continued to decline. - (Mortgage Loans) Mortgage loans fell KRW0.6 trillion as both the banking sector and the nonbanking sector saw a drop of KRW0.3 trillion each. - (Other Types of Loans) Other types of loans fell KRW4.8 trillion, led by credit loans (down KRW2.5 trillion), but the pace of decline was slower compared to the previous month (down KRW7.1 trillion in January). (By Sector) Household loans edged down in both the banking and nonbanking sectors. - (Banking Sector) Household loans in the banking sector declined KRW2.7 trillion in February. Regarding mortgage loans, banks saw a growth in policy mortgage loans (up KRW1.0 trillion) and general individual mortgage loans (up KRW0.7 trillion), but a drop in jeonse loans (down KRW2.5 trillion),which resulted in a decline of banks mortgage loans for the first time since relevant statistics began to be collected in 2015. Other types of loans from banks dropped KRW2.4 trillion, led by credit loans (down KRW1.9 trillion), but the pace of decline slowed compared to the previous month. - (Nonbanking Sector) Nonb
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Mar 08, 2023
- SFC Imposes Penalty Surcharge on Violation of Short Selling Regulation for First Time
- The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), a sub-commission of the FSC responsible for the oversight of the securities and futures market, reached a decision on March 8 to impose penalty surcharges of KRW3.87 billion and KRW2.18 billion on company A and company B, respectively, for their naked short selling activities, which violate the regulations on short sales prescribed in Article 180(1) of the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act (FSCMA). Previously, illegal short selling activities were handled with administrative fine or caution. This is the first instance where authorities are imposing penalty surcharge on entities who committed those activities. While closely cooperating with relevant institutions, authorities will continue to maintain effective market monitoring, detection and investigation system on violation of regulations against short sales, and continue to strictly penalize illegal activities. Summary of Violation and Details of Discussion a) Company A had recorded on its internal system some amount of ◇◇◇ stocks that are expected to be issued through a capital increase without consideration before they are actually issued, in order to assess the value of its funds. Then, perceiving the stock as those can be sold, the company submitted sell orders on 210,744 ordinary shares (KRW25.14 billion) of ◇◇◇, which the fund had no ownership of, within a certain period in 2021. This was in violation of the regulation that prohibits naked short selling. b) Company B had erroneously entered the information of the borrowed △△▽ stocks, the name of which is similar to that of △△△ stocks, into its balance management system. Then, based on this overstated balance, the company submitted sell orders on 27,374 ordinary shares (KRW7.329 billion) of △△▽ stocks (which the company actually had no ownership of) on a certain day in 2021. This was in violation of the regulation that prohibits naked short selling. As this is the f
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Mar 03, 2023
- Interest Rate Disclosure to be Expanded in Banking Sector to Promote Competition
- Financial authorities announced a plan to expand banks disclosure of the differences between interest rates on deposits and loans at the 1st working group meeting of the taskforce on improving the management and operating practices of banks and banking system held on March 2. The following are specific measures of the plan. a) Along with the current comparative disclosure on the differences between interest rates on newly transacted deposits and loans across different banks, the banking sector will additionally provide comparative public disclosure on the differences between interest rates on outstanding balance of deposits and loans among different banks, which will show the profitability level of each bank. In addition, the banking sector will also provide information on detailed interest rate of loans (household loans, business loans, etc.) and deposits based on outstanding balances. b) Interest rates on jeonse loans, which are highly relevant to peoples daily life, offered by individual banks will be comparatively disclosed in order to facilitate clear comparison of interest rates on jeonse loans (interest rates on home mortgages and credit loans are currently being disclosed). c) The banking sector will comparatively disclose individual banks interest rates on household loans in a more detailed manner, which subdivide them into base rate, spread, and preferential rate, intended to help customers compare respective characteristics of banks interest rates calculation. d) Each bank will voluntarily add a new webpage to put up explanations of the factors that bring about changes in their interest rates, such as expansion of loans to low- and mid- credit borrowers or increased ratio of short-term bank borrowings. Authorities plan to revise the detailed regulations on supervision of banking business and set up a computer network system between the Korea Federation of Banks and individual banks with a goal to begin implementation of these measures in July this year.
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Feb 28, 2023
- Fast-Track System to be Utilized Effectively in Investigation of Unfair Trading Activities
- The FSC, the FSS, the Korea Exchange and Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office held a joint council meetingon February 27. At the meeting, authorities discussed and reviewed the outcome of operating the fast-track system in handling unfair trading activities in 2022. The fast-track system, introduced in 2013, is an emergency measure by Chair of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) in which a case deemed urgent and significant can be referred to the prosecutors office without going through the SFCs deliberation. If a case under investigation by the FSC or the FSS is deemed to have urgent need of the prosecutors investigation due to concerns about a suspect fleeing or a potential destruction of evidence, SFC Chair can decide to quickly refer the case to the prosecutors office after consulting with relevant authorities. In 2022, the FSC and the FSS referred a total of 20 casesto Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office through the fast-track system, leading to prosecution of numerous offenders within short periods of time. In order to more effectively respond to unfair trading activities, which are becoming more sophisticated and organized, authorities will strengthen cooperation among related agencies and concentrate more investigative capacity on major cases that have a potential to inflict significant losses to investors. By utilizing the fast-track system, authorities will take swift and stern responses against major cases involving unfair trading activities, and make continuous efforts to improve the operation of the fast-track system. Major Fast-Tracked Cases in 2022 [Case #1] Case involving circulation of false information about COVID-19 test kit and sale of company stocks at high price for profiteering (Case Summary) The offenders (a) acquired a KOSDAQ-listed company (company A) through a leveraged buyout (LBO: MA without own capital), (b) then spread a rumorabout company As COVID-19 test kit to drastically push up its stock price,and (c) sold the
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Feb 09, 2023
- Household Loans, January 2023
- In January 2023, the outstanding balance of household loansacross all financial sectors declined KRW8.0 trillion (m-o-m) and the growth rate also dropped at a faster pace (down 1.0 percent, y-o-y), showing a strong trend of decline. Financial authorities will ensure stable management of household debt and continue to seamlessly implement the normalization of relevant loan regulations to help non-speculative homebuyers. (Overall) Household loans across all financial sectors dropped KRW8.0 trillion in January 2023. The year-on-year growth rate (down 1.0 percent) declined at a faster pace compared to the previous month (down 0.5 percent), showing a continuous trend of slowing down. (By Type) Mortgage loans went down month-on-month for the first time since relevant statistics became available in 2015, and the rate of decline for other types of loans has also increased. - (Mortgage Loans) Mortgage loans fell KRW0.6 trillion in January, led by jeonse loans (down KRW1.8 trillion) and home-backed mortgage loans from nonbank sectors (down KRW0.6 trillion) such as mutual finance. - (Other Types of Loans) Other types of loans fell KRW7.4 trillion, as the rate of the decline increased compared to the previous month (down KRW5.2 trillion), led by credit loans. (By Sector) Household loans edged down in both the banking and nonbanking sectors. -(Banking Sector) Household loans in the banking sector declined KRW4.6 trillion in January. Regarding mortgage loans, banks saw a growth in government-sponsored mortgage lending (up KRW1.7 trillion) and group lending for new apartment subscription (up KRW0.3 trillion), but a drop in jeonse loans (down KRW1.8 trillion).Other types of loans from banks dropped KRW4.6 trillion, declining at a faster pace from a month ago (down KRW2.9 trillion) led by credit loans (down KRW3.8 trillion). -(Nonbanking Sector) In January, nonbanks saw a drop of KRW3.4 trillion in household loans with a slight rise in savings banks (up KRW0.1 trillion) but declines
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Jan 26, 2023
- SFC Imposes Penalty Surcharge on Overseas-based Financial Investment Entity for Market Disturbance
- The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), a sub-commission of the FSC responsible for the oversight of the securities and futures market, decided on January 26 to impose a penalty surcharge of KRW11.88 billion on an overseas-based financial investment business entity (securities firm A hereinafter) for disturbing market order with its high-frequency algorithmic trading activities. This is the first instance in Korea where authorities reached a decision to impose a penalty surcharge for market disturbance caused by high-frequency algorithmic trading activities.With the growth in the volume of high-frequency algorithmic transactions recently, financial authorities will continuously strengthen the administration of market risks associated with them. Overview The SFC recognized that securities firm A engaged in an activity of disturbing market order in its transactions of a total of 264 stock items in 6,796 trading periods via a Seoul-based securities firm (securities firm B) between October 2017 and May 2018, and decided to impose a penalty surcharge of KRW11.88 billion on securities firm A, pursuant to the Article 429-2 of the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act (FSCMA). Violation Securities firm A engaged in trading activities using its algorithmic trading system, which enables it to acquire and analyze data on price quotation and trade executions as well as submit buy and sell orders via direct market access (DMA)more quickly than ordinary retail investors. In the process, securities firm A placed orders intensively and repetitively within a short period of time in the following pattern(a) placing immediate-or-cancel (IOC)buy market orders to exhaust all quantities of best ask prices in succession, and (b) submitting buy limit orders on any remaining unfilled quantity where there is no bid price given in order to newly generate the best bid price (inflating bid price) and then cancelling such transactions. Thus, a suspicion was raised that secur
