FKI Requests Naver and Kakao to Register Membership

The press conference of Chairman Ryu Jin, who was inaugurated as the 39th chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, was held on the 22nd at the Federation of Korean Industries Hall. Chairman Ryu is answering a reporter's question. Photo by Heo Younghan younghan@

The four major conglomerates (Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor, and LG) have decided to join the Korea Economic Association (KEA), the successor to the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), and it has been reported that the FKI has also requested membership from Naver and Kakao.

According to industry and business sources on the 23rd, the FKI recently sent official letters requesting membership to Naver and Kakao, and the two companies are said to be conducting internal reviews regarding whether to join.

Previously, at the general meeting held the day before, the FKI presented a direction for organizational reform, including the implementation of institutional measures to prevent collusion between politics and business, and expressed plans to expand its scope by attracting companies from various industries such as IT as members.

Ryu Jin, newly appointed chairman of the FKI and chairman of Pungsan Group, said at a press conference the day before, "With the rise of industries such as IT and entertainment, the FKI cannot just stand by," adding, "The chairman group will be composed of young and diverse members to enable communication with younger generations."

Meanwhile, the FKI held an extraordinary general meeting the day before and resolved to change the institution's name to KEA and to amend its articles of association to absorb and integrate the Korea Economic Research Institute (KERI), a subordinate research institute, into KEA.

Accordingly, some affiliates of the four major conglomerates that remained members of KERI have succeeded as members of KEA, thereby formally joining KERI. Previously, the four major conglomerates had withdrawn from the FKI following the Park Geun-hye government’s political scandal.

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