New KCCI under SK chairman to encourage ESG values

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, left, shakes hands with outgoing Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industries (KCCI) Chairman Park Yong-maan during a general meeting of the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industries in Seoul, Tuesday. Chey was appointed as the chairman of the Seoul chamber and will succeed Park as KCCI chairman in March. Yonhap

By Nam Hyun-woo

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won is expected to be appointed as the new head of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) in March, and under his stewardship the business organization is expected to encourage its members to pursue environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) values.

The head of the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industry typically serves as the head of the KCCI, and it appointed Chey, 61, as its new chairman Tuesday.

Chey will be officially appointed as the KCCI chairman at a March 24 general meeting of member companies for the first of a possible two three-year terms.

"I have been thinking about many things in taking up the responsibility of leading the Seoul chamber at a time when various difficulties linger across industries," Chey said. "I believe we can improve our business circumstances and build a good environment for future generations with help from various people."

With Chey's concurrent chairmanship of the KCCI, its leadership is anticipated to become younger and represent the voices of a wider range of businesses, as the heads of info-tech firms, financial companies and startups are also joining the Seoul chamber as vice chairmen.

Along with Chey, seven new vice chairmen were appointed to the Seoul chamber ― Korea Investment Holdings Chairman Kim Nam-goo, Kakao Chairman Kim Beom-soo, NCSoft CEO Kim Taek-jin, Doosan Group Vice Chairman Park Gee-won, Bespin Global CEO Lee Han-joo, SK Social Value Committee Chairman Lee Hyung-hee and Krafton Chairman Chang Byung-gyu.

With SK's Lee now a vice chairman, the KCCI is also expected to follow SK Group and become more active in encouraging member companies to pursue ESG goals.

Under Chey's leadership, SK Group has been highlighting ESG values as a priority in operating its businesses. In 2019, SK Group introduced an index to measure each affiliate's social contributions and has been making this public in financial statements or sustainability reports to compel its units to be more committed to social values.

As part of these efforts, SK hynix issued $1 billion worth of green bonds last month to invest in environmentally friendly business projects. SK Innovation is planning to unload a 49 percent stake in its wholly-owned chemical subsidiary SK Global Chemical and set up a joint venture with a global partner company to lower its reliance on the conventional chemical business.

Chey has been striving to share this business philosophy with fellow businessmen nationwide. SK Group began holding an annual Social Value Connect event in 2019 to share ideas on corporate social responsibility. Last year, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun and POSCO Chairman Choi Jeong-woo participated to share their thoughts on ESG values.

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