A South Korean businessman has been kidnapped in Kazakhstan.

The Foreign Ministry in Seoul said that the man, identified by his surname Nam, was kidnapped on his way to work in Almaty at around nine a.m. Wednesday, local time.

The ministry says the unidentified kidnappers called the man's company and demanded a ransom.

The ministry sent embassy officials to the largest city and former capital of the central Asian country, and asked Kazakh authorities to conduct thorough investigations.