South Korea

Korea Gas Corp (KoGas) has kicked off preparations for its first international bond of the year, which will hit the market next month.

The former head of structured finance, commercial real estate and corporate advisory at Hang Seng Bank has resurfaced at First Gulf Bank.

Société Générale has announced several senior appointments to its South Korean business with Andrew Kim now helming the unit.

Export-Import Bank of Korea (Kexim) set a new benchmark this week with what bankers say is the first triple tranche deal out of South Korea. The policy bank managed to bring high quality US investors into its three year notes, while also sealing tight pricing on the longer-dated portion.

Hotel Lotte Co is aiming to raise as much as W5.7tr ($4.8bn) from its South Korean IPO and is due to start pre-marketing on Friday.

International bond issuance from South Korea looks set to resume with Export-Import Bank of Korea back in the market for its third dollar fundraising of the year.

Japan’s Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp (NSSMC) is planning to sell more than a third of its shareholding in South Korean steelmaker Posco.

South Korea’s Hotel Lotte Co, which is planning a $3bn-$5bn listing, could start bookbuilding on Friday, according to a source close to the deal.

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Kexim) is working on its debut Panda bond and has mandated two banks on the deal. However the trade still has to overcome a number of barriers including the ongoing issues around accounting, two sources have told GlobalRMB.

Export-Import Bank of Korea is getting ready to make a comeback, having issued a request for proposals this week.

South Korea’s stock exchange is planning to push companies listed on its boards to offer more of their disclosures in English alongside Korean to satisfy global investors.

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation is teaming up with Korea Exchange (KRX) to build a trade repository solution in Korea.