Goldman, Sachs & Co. has reached an agreement to  buy a 17% stake in South Korea's Kookmin Bank for $500 million, the two   institutions announced Monday.   
The move, which makes Goldman the fourth major foreign investor in South  Korea's banking system, is expected to give the New York-based investment   bank entry to Korea's booming merger and acquisition arena and the purchase   and sale of distressed Korean bank loans and other assets.     
  
Germany's Commerzbank AG, London-based HSBC Holdings PLC, and Newbridge  Capital Ltd., a U.S. investment partnership, have all either bought or   reached agreements to buy major stakes in South Korean Banks.   
Two other South Korean banks, Housing and Commercial Bank and Hanvit  Bank, also plan to raise additional capital by selling off minority stakes   to foreign banks.