As the virtual assets market entered a crypto winter last year, the profits of banks that offer real-name bank accounts for virtual asset transactions in Korea were also halved. The amount of the banks commission showed a downtrend last year, which was in contrast to the continuous surge observed from 2019 to 2021.
More than seven out of 10 listed Korean companies are set to hold annual shareholders meetings throughout this week and market watchers are paying particular attention to JB Financial and KT&G, whose annual meetings are expected to become the settings of proxy fights initiated by activist funds. JB Financial Group is facing a showdown in a proxy battle with Align Partners, a local activist fund, at its annual shareholders meeting on Thursday. Align Partners is the financial giant s second-largest shareholder with a 14.04 percent stake. As a key shareholder, the activist fund has been urging the group to increase dividends since early this year. Yet the group s shareholder return policy announced in early February, deciding to pay 715 won ($0.55) of dividend per share, failed to satisfy the activist fund s demand, prompting it to submit a shareholder proposal urging the group to pay 900 won in dividends per share.
JB Financial Group has been awarded as an outstanding company for its environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria by the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability (KCGS), as the financial group received a comprehensive A rating from the corporate assessment agency.
JB Financial Group posted a quarterly net profit of 167 billion won ($116 million) during the third quarter of this year, up 24.7 percent compared to the same period last year. According to the financial group s official announcement on Monday, JB Financial s cumulative net profit during the first three quarters of this year stood at 487.1 billion won, which is an all-time-high for the first three quarters. It is also an 18.1 percent year-on-year growth.
The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has started looking into allegations of bad loans related to solar energy development during the former President Moon Jae-in administration. The FSS said Wednesday it is planning to look into banks detailed records regarding their approved loans related to solar energy development since 2017.