Lee Nak-yeon Meets Business Leaders but Only Confirms Differences Over 'Three Regulatory Laws'

Meeting with Presidents of 6 Major Groups at Korea Employers Federation
Son Kyung-sik "National Assembly Increasing Corporate Burden"

Lee Nak-yeon, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea (right), and Sohn Kyung-shik, chairman of the Korea Employers Federation, attended the Democratic Party-Korea Employers Federation meeting held on the 6th at the Korea Employers Federation in Baekbeom-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, and posed before the meeting started. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy reporters Changhwan Lee, Yoonju Hwang, Jihee Kim] Presidents of leading domestic companies such as Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, and LG met with Lee Nak-yeon, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, urging a reconsideration of the three corporate regulation laws promoted by the government and ruling party, including the amendments to the Commercial Act, the Fair Trade Act, and the Financial Group Supervision Act.

Business leaders met with Lee with a faint hope and appealed to him, but the gap between the two sides' positions still appears to be unresolved.

On the morning of the 6th, the presidents of the six major groups, including Sohn Kyung-shik, chairman of the Korea Employers Federation, Lee In-yong, president of Samsung Electronics, Gong Young-woon, president of Hyundai Motor, Jang Dong-hyun, president of SK Inc., Hwang Hyun-sik, president of LG Uplus, Oh Sung-yeop, president of Lotte Holdings, and Kim Chang-beom, vice chairman of Hanwha Solutions, met Lee at the Federation of Korean Industries building in Mapo-gu, Seoul, to convey the business community's concerns about the three corporate regulation laws.

This is the first time that the presidents of the major groups have directly appealed to the political sphere regarding the three corporate regulation laws.

The six major group presidents entered the Federation of Korean Industries building around 9:40 a.m. with stern faces. They remained silent in response to reporters' questions and took notes on key points during the public greetings between Chairman Sohn and Leader Lee, organizing the companies' concerns to convey to Lee.

It is reported that during the subsequent closed-door meeting, the presidents explained the business community's concerns about the corporate regulation bills to Leader Lee in detail.

In his public greeting, Chairman Sohn said, "To quickly overcome the economic crisis caused by COVID-19 and to lead the economy in the post-COVID era, it is essential to improve systems that revive companies and enhance competitiveness. However, more than 200 bills that impose restrictions and increase burdens on corporate management and investment activities have been submitted to the National Assembly, which is a major concern for the business community."

He explained that among the 200 bills, companies are most concerned about the three corporate regulation laws: the amendments to the Commercial Act, the Fair Trade Act, and the Financial Group Supervision Act.

Regarding the concerns of business leaders, Leader Lee responded at a general level. He said, "The three fair economy laws are very old issues and aim to enhance the soundness of our companies, not to cause trouble. While it is possible to supplement certain issues such as concerns over management rights disputes with foreign hedge funds, it is difficult to delay or change the direction of the law amendments."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.