Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
Financial group leaders, ruling DPK meet over Korea New Deal
From left, KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyu, Woori Financial Group Son Tae-seung and Kim Gwang-soo, the head of the Korea Federation of Banks (KFB) attend a meeting at KFB headquarters in central Seoul, Friday. / Yonhap
By Anna J. Park
By Anna J. Park
While expressing support for the government's five-year Korea New Deal initiative, major financial groups in Korea have urged the ruling party to deregulate the country's financial markets.
Key members of the ruling party and the heads of Korea's five major financial groups ― KB, Shinhan, Woori, Hana and NH ― and other leaders of financial institutions met Friday to discuss ways to support President Moon Jae-in's Korean New Deal initiative aimed at stimulating economic growth and job creation through digital and green projects.
Kim Gwang-soo, the head of the Korea Federation of Banks (KFB), told reporters after Friday's meeting that some of the deregulation requests made by financial groups to the ruling party included tax benefits for long-term equity investments by these financial giants.
Ruling party lawmakers said the financial sector's support was crucial in ensuring the success of the massive government project.
“What matters most in laying the groundwork for the further development of the Korean economy is to facilitate the private sector's money being funneled into innovative Korea New Deal companies through the capital market,” Kim Jin-pyo, a five-term lawmaker and the head of the National Economic Advisory Council, said at the meeting.
The government announced the Korea New Deal initiative in July last year, with plans to inject 160 trillion won ($133 bil.) by 2025 to create 1.9 million jobs and to support green and digital industries to lead the nation's future growth.
Korea's major financial groups each revealed their future strategic plans to support the government's move, such as investing in innovative start-ups in the green and digital sectors as well as providing benefits to local entrepreneurs in the area.