Seoul Investment Agency-FSS Hold First Investment Promotion Briefing for Singapore and Hong Kong Financial Institutions

Supporting Competitive Korean Companies' Overseas Expansion
Strengthening Incentives for Foreign Investment Companies Creating and Maintaining Jobs in Seoul

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Investment Agency announced on the 30th that it will jointly hold its first investment briefing session since its official launch, titled ‘Seoul, Your Next Financial Hub,’ with the Financial Supervisory Service on the 31st, targeting financial institutions in Singapore and Hong Kong.

This investment briefing will be conducted online for about 20 companies including asset management firms, banks, venture capital (VC), and fintech companies in the Singapore and Hong Kong regions. Customized consultations will be held by dividing sessions according to the nature and sector of the financial institutions. The Seoul Investment Agency will focus on promoting support policies such as the operation of the ‘Seoul International Financial Office’ and ‘Seoul Fintech Lab,’ as well as regulatory innovation strategies including plans to designate Yeouido as a financial special zone. The Financial Supervisory Service plans to address questions on regulatory policies that overseas financial institutions are most interested in during the event.

Additionally, Seoul City will provide employment and training subsidies of up to 100 million KRW per company to foreign-invested companies that create jobs and maintain employment going forward. Subsidies can be applied for by foreign-invested companies investing in Seoul’s eight designated new growth engine industries: IT convergence, digital content industry, green industry, business services, fashion and design, finance, tourism and conventions, and biomedical, or by foreign-invested companies that have signed a memorandum of understanding with Seoul City and entered the Seoul market.

Foreign-invested companies wishing to apply for subsidies can visit or send applications by mail to the Seoul City Financial Investment Division by May 20, and applications can also be submitted via the responsible officer’s email.

The Seoul Investment Agency will also be responsible for supporting participation in offline overseas investment briefing sessions, which are resuming for the first time in three years since COVID-19. In the first half of this year, 10 promising Seoul companies will be selected and introduced to overseas investors at ‘BIO USA,’ the world’s largest bio and medical exhibition, and ‘Collision 2022,’ North America’s leading tech conference known as the Olympics of tech. The Seoul Investment Agency plans to select and support a final 10 companies through a public contest process, including recommendations from venture capital (VC) and related organizations within Seoul’s industrial special zones, for Seoul companies wishing to enter the global market and attract overseas investment.

Meanwhile, the ‘Seoul Investment Agency English Chatbot Service,’ which offers investment consultations 24/7, will be launched at the end of April. Since the main customers of the Seoul Investment Agency are foreign companies and investors, it is expected that professional investment consultations will be possible without delays or inconveniences caused by time differences overseas.

Baek Hyun-sook, Director of New Growth Industry Planning at Seoul City, said, “The Seoul Investment Agency will establish itself as the first consultation window for foreign companies and investors wishing to do business in Seoul, becoming a business partner that provides one-stop, close support throughout the entire process from market exploration to investment activities (corporate establishment) and post-management.”

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