South Korean tax officials probing suspicions of tax evasion have raided the offices of several foreign funds that invest billions of dollars here, financial sources said yesterday.
Auditors from the National Tax Service (NTS) have been carrying out sweeping probes into seven foreign funds since Tuesday, reports said.
NIS officials and foreign funds declined to comment on the reported tax audit but financial industry sources confirmed tax officials have seized documents from several foreign groups.
Yonhap news agency said the seven foreign funds reportedly targeted include US-based Newbridge Capital, Carlyle Group and Lone Star as well as the Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC).
The tax probe comes amid growing complaints among foreign investors that South Korea is taking a hostile policy towards them and offshore entities who are based in tax havens and use tax treaties to avoid tax legally.
Seoul introduced new regulations last month under which any shareholder acquiring more than 5 percent of a company here is required to disclose whether they intend to influence the company's management.
All investors also have to declare their legal status and management structure, the name of their largest backers and how they raised the capital for their investment.
Foreign investors say the new requirements are aimed at tightening control on them but South Korean officials say they are to be applied fairly to both domestic and foreign investors, and is aimed at enhancing transparency.
Defenders of the foreign funds say they took on high-risk investments at a time when South Korean investors were unwilling to do so and saved or created thousands of jobs and boosted the country's economy.
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
CHIPS AND DEFENSE: Trump said the US had lost its chip business and Taipei should pay it for defense, and added that ‘we’re no different than an insurance company’ Taiwan-US relations are solid, and both sides are in agreement that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region are everyone’s concern, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday following comments by former US president Donald Trump that Taiwan “should pay” for US defense. Taiwan is thankful to the US for supporting Taiwan’s bid to participate in international organizations, Cho told a news conference in Taipei. “I know the people very well, respect them greatly. They did take about 100 percent of our chip business,” Trump told Bloomberg on June 25 in an interview that was published on Tuesday. “I think
SHOW OF SUPPORT: Taiwan has been one of the largest buyers of US defense equipment, supporting American businesses and jobs, US lawmakers said Taiwan has been paying for its own defense, a US Department of State official said on Wednesday, adding that purchases of military equipment are important to the US economy and for ensuring regional security. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller was asked at a news conference about comments by former US president Donald Trump, the Republican nominee in November’s US presidential election, who said during an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan should pay Washington for its defense needs. “The purchases that they [Taiwan] have made not only are important, we believe, to regional security, but are important to the United States economy,”
Hsu Wen-erh (許汶而) on Friday became the first Taiwanese to swim solo across the English Channel, saying she was very happy to bring Taiwan to the world. Hsu completed the challenge in 12 hours, 17 minutes and eight seconds, after swimming across the Strait of Gibraltar in October last year. She said she had planned to swim the English Channel in August next year, but seized the opportunity when a vacancy became available on the waiting list. She went to the UK in May to train for a test that involves swimming for six hours at 16°C, which people who want to swim