Shinhan Financial, KT strike cross-shareholding deal

Shinhan Financial Group Co. Ltd. entered into a 437.5 billion South Korean won cross-shareholding deal with telecom carrier KT Corp., The Korea Herald reported Jan. 17, citing the companies.

Under the deal, the South Korean financial group's banking unit, Shinhan Bank, will acquire a 5.46% stake in KT. Meanwhile, KT will acquire a 2.08% stake in Shinhan Financial.

The two companies plan to jointly issue digital assets and launch a digital asset exchange, along with a set of alternative measures to assess credit ratings of small business owners based on KT's data-driven business analysis of store locations. In addition, they will create a fund to invest in startups in South Korea and abroad, as well as establish a new task force for research and development to explore further collaboration opportunities.