South Korea
Korean consumer default likely to affect Asian securitisation, says S&P
The deteriorating credit quality of South Korea’s securitised credit card portfolios has not only meant Korean asset-backed securities issuance has ground almost to a halt this year, but that it is likely to negatively affect consumer finance…
Moody’s KMV releases RiskCalc for Korean private firms
Moody’s KMV has released RiskCalc Korea, a web-based model for estimating the probability of default or expected default frequencies (EDF) on obligations of non-financial Korean private companies.
South Korean CDS spreads tighten after earlier panic protection buying
The cost of protection on South Korean sovereign US dollar credit dropped from this week’s higher levels as market sentiment improved, but dealers said that the market is still nervous and there could be more volatility in the credit default swaps market.
Waiting for guidance
South Korea's banks have made huge strides in implementing risk management systems over the past few years, but Basel II is not yet a driving force, with banks waiting for the Korean regulator to publish local guidelines.
Kosda to launch benchmark CMS index
The Korean Swaps Dealers Association (Kosda) plans to launch a benchmark constant maturity swap (CMS) fixing index in December, according to Seung Won Hwang, head of derivatives marketing at Citibank and co-chairman of Kosda.
SFE pays US$28 million for OM technology
The Sydney Futures Exchange (SFE) entered a US$28 million, eight-year agreement on Friday to outsource its core clearing technology and operational support functions to Swedish technology vendor OM. The agreement includes US$5 million in capital costs…
Stepping up for Basel
South Korea’s banks stand to be the hardest hit by the new Basel recommendations, forcing institutions to focus on improving risk management operations. Vikki Kunz reports from Seoul.
Asian banks face hedging threat
Hong Kong - The Basel II bank capital adequacy accord could stop Asia's banks from hedging risk, resulting in their being shut out of the global banking system entirely, says Paul Sheehan, Hong Kong-based co-head of Asian bank research at US investment…