Korean Financial Market New for?November 23, 2023

1. KB Kookmin Card announced on the 22nd that it succeeded in issuing overseas asset-backed securities worth $500 million under more favorable conditions compared to domestic procurement. The overseas ABS issued this time has an average maturity of 3 years, and MUFG Bank and Singapore DBS Bank participated as joint investors. Risk factors due to exchange rate and interest rate fluctuations were hedged through currency and interest rate swaps. https://www.fntimes.com/html/view.php?ud=202311221053252431237391cf86_18
2. Mirae Asset Global REITs' plan to acquire 100% of the shares of the Houston, Texas logistics center by raising 57.4 billion won through paid-in capital increase ended in failure due to cold reactions from existing shareholders and general investors. The subscription rate for the paid-in capital increase by existing shareholders was only 29%, and the subscription rate for general investors for forfeited shares was less than 20%. Mirae Asset Global REITs only managed to raise 24.7 billion won, less than half of the target amount. https://biz.chosun.com/stock/market_trend/2023/11/22/QDIC2R6755BBRI75KFIEZNCCAI/
3. The main bidding for the sale of Korea's HMM will be held today (23rd). Participating in HMM's main bidding are Harim, Dongwon Group, and LX International, which were shortlisted at the end of August. The current sale price of HMM is expected to be up to more than 7 trillion won, including the management rights premium. Ultimately, the key to selecting a buyer is ‘financing.’ Although the current shortlisters have decent financial soundness, financing is essential due to the high sale price. https://www.fntimes.com/html/view.php?ud=20231123100523714899ebb03838_18
4. As delinquency rates soar and the scale of non-performing loans (NPLs) in the banking sector continues to grow, the Korean NPL investment market is booming. According to the financial industry on the 22nd, Woori Financial F&I's accumulated net profit as of the third quarter of this year was 1,224.72 million won, a significant turnaround from a deficit of 85.83 million won in the same period last year. Hana F&I, Hana Financial Group's NPL investment specialist, also recorded a cumulative net profit of 29.043 billion won in the third quarter of this year, up 10.3% from 26.321 billion won in the same period last year. https://n.news.naver.com/article/011/0004265030?sid=101
5. With the completion of the first steel tower of the East Coast-Metropolitan Transmission Line, construction of the 230km section of the transmission line began in earnest. The East Coast-Metropolitan Area Transmission Line serves to supply electricity produced from nuclear power plants and thermal power plants concentrated in the East Coast area to the metropolitan area, including the Yongin System Semiconductor Cluster that will be built in the future. As the power plants that have been built one after another in the East Coast region are idle because they have no way to transmit electricity, the government plans to make all efforts to complete the East Coast-metropolitan area transmission line by 2026. https://v.daum.net/v/20231123112900212
6. Securities companies predicted that the net profit of Korea's four largest financial holding companies this year would increase by about 700 billion won compared to last year. Thanks to the steep rise in interest rates, profits are expected to be larger than last year, when record-breaking performance was achieved. In particular, KB Financial Group is expected to join the '5 trillion net profit club' for the first time this year. https://v.daum.net/v/20231123101609846
7. Korea's Soulbrain, a KOSDAQ-listed semiconductor and display materials company, is seeking to attract investment worth 100 billion won. Multiple financial investors are considering participation. The funds raised through investment attraction are expected to be used for recent mergers and acquisitions. https://www.thebell.co.kr/free/content/ArticleView.asp?key=202311211325495520109471&lcode=00
8. As of the end of the third quarter, the delinquency rate of Korean won loans from domestic banks reached the highest in four years. The delinquency rate fell compared to the previous month as banks wrote off and sold delinquent receivables at the end of the quarter, but excluding seasonal factors, delinquency rates in most sectors, including home mortgage loans and household credit loans, reached the highest in four years. Financial authorities plan to encourage banks to accumulate sufficient loan loss reserves to prepare for the possibility of further increases in delinquency rates in the future. https://n.news.naver.com/article/009/0005219163?sid=101
9. Korean medical AI (artificial intelligence) company Lunit announced on the 23rd that a study was published in European Radiology showing that the cancer diagnosis ability of its mammography AI image analysis solution 'Lunit Insight MMG' is similar to or better than that of a primary diagnostician. https://news.mt.co.kr/mtview.php?no=2023112309084257748
10. Starbucks Korea is actively working with Hyundai Motors affiliates to install electric vehicle charging stations. It is interpreted that the company is trying to generate new revenue by charging parking lots that used to be free and also providing electric vehicle charging services. Currently, electric vehicle charging stations have been installed at nine Starbucks stores, and one more location is scheduled to be added within the year. Starbucks plans to continue installing more electric vehicle charging stations in stores with their own parking lots. https://n.news.naver.com/article/366/0000949567

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