VENTURE CAPITAL POST

South Korea-based investment fund Korea Investment Corp (KIC) is considering selling a $1-billion stake in Bank of America after the latter's value halved since 2008, according to a report by Korean media.

Tech giants Microsoft and Samsung are in talks to acquire stakes in a France-based online music startup and a video-sharing website, according to a report by French weekly Le Journal du Dimanche.

Japan-based trading house Marubeni Corp sold its 30% interest in Australia-based Milmerran Power Station to a buyer in South Korea for under A$200 million ($179 million), according to a source familiar with the deal.

Hyundai Motor Co. on Friday named sales chief David Zuchowski as the new chief of its US arm. Zuchowski will replace incumbent US chief John Krafcik, whose contract expires at the end of the year.

South Korean oil refiner operator GS Holdings Corp entered into an agreement with commodity trader LG International Corp to acquire a combined stake in STX Energy for $598 million.

Local buyout funds like MBK Partners and Vogo Fund are now leading the domestic buyout market in South Korea just nearly a decade after its first private equity fund was established in the country, the Financial Times reported.

South Korean-based private equity firm Hahn & Co will pay $283 million to buy a 76% stake in Hanjin Shipping Co's bulk carrier business, Bloomberg reported.

Financial data from Mergermarket indicated an increasing influence of local buyout firms in South Korea, thanks largely to the support of the national government by relaxing regulations, a Financial Times report said.

Korean Air, South Korea's flag carrier and largest airline, has put up for sale its shares in refiner S-Oil and 13 planes to raise KRW3.5 trillion. Proceeds from the deal will be used to pare its debt and provide aid to affiliate Hanjin Shipping Co.

LIG Insurance Co. has put up for sale a controlling stake of 20.96% in the South Korean non-life insurer to compensate investors for losses sustained after buying debt issued by its affiliate. It has hired Goldman Sachs Group to advise on the sale.

A South Korean court awarded Apple a legal victory on a patent infringement case filed by Samsung Electronics Co. The decision would enable Apple to continue selling its products in South Korea, Reuters said in its report.

The New York Times said private equity investors of Oriental Brewery in South Korea could stand to gain a 34% annualized return on their original investment of the brewery.

South Korea's Financial Services Commission on Wednesday cleared MBK Partners' $1.75 billion acquisition of ING Groep's Korean insurer. MBK bought 8.2 million shares in ING Life Korea.

Australia-based energy company Ambassador Oil and Gas Ltd has sold its 52.5% stake in South Australia's Cooper Basin, a potential gas field, to New Standard Energy Ltd for USD42.5 million.

Hong Kong-based private equity firm Gaw Capital Partners is set to purchase minority stakes in four commercial property acquisitions in the UK and the US, in a deal with a total value of USD1 billion.