The Korea Times
Korea’s financial industry is bracing for wider tax scrutiny after the National Tax Service (NTS) launched a string of surprise investigations into Hana Financial Group and Meritz Securities, according to officials, Monday, fueling concerns that regulatory pressure on the sector is escalating. Over the weekend, tax authorities opened an unscheduled probe into Meritz Securities after reportedly detecting possible signs of tax evasion. Officials from the agency’s infamous Investigation Bureau 4 raided the company’s Seoul headquarters to secure accounting records and materials tied to the inquiry. Widely known in corporate circles as the “grim reaper,” Bureau 4 is the agency’s elite special investigations unit, tasked with pursuing major corporations and high-income individuals suspected of serious offenses such as tax evasion. Its probes are rare and often carry the threat of steep penalties or criminal prosecution. Meritz Securities has earned a reputation for its aggressiveness in investment banking and real estate project financing, but that rapid growth has also been accom
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