[2024 Asia Fund Awards] Chairman Seo Yuseok "Striving to Establish a Healthy Long-term Investment Culture"

Congratulatory Address by Seo Yuseok, Chairman of the Korea Financial Investment Association

Congratulations on the 15th anniversary of the ‘Asia Fund Awards’ ceremony this year. The Asia Economy ‘Asia Fund Awards’ is a meaningful event that contributes to the development of South Korea’s fund industry and promotes it widely by annually recognizing outstanding asset management companies and distributors.

We sincerely thank Woo Byung-hyun, CEO of Asia Economy, for hosting this meaningful event, Professor Jeong Soon-seop of Seoul National University for serving as the chairman of the judging panel, and all the related personnel for their hard work. We also extend our heartfelt congratulations to all the award recipients today and express our gratitude for their contributions to the fund market over the past year.

Last year was truly a year of uncertainty. Amid a high interest rate environment, volatility in domestic and international financial markets increased, and the fog of real economic crisis caused by various geopolitical risks has yet to clear. It is also true that the profit environment surrounding the financial investment industry is facing many difficulties. Nevertheless, thanks to the efforts of the industry, financial authorities, and the media, South Korea’s fund market continues to show steady growth. Last year, 68 trillion KRW flowed into the fund market, and the net asset value of the domestic fund market surpassed 1,000 trillion KRW for the first time at the beginning of this year, while the assets under management of default option subscription funds exceeded 1 trillion KRW.

It is no exaggeration to say that the fund market still plays a pivotal role in the public’s wealth accumulation and stable retirement preparation. However, as the fund industry grows larger, the responsibility borne by our financial investment industry is also heavy. Above all, it is time to consider resolving the Korea discount and leveling up the fund market to the next stage.

The association will make multifaceted efforts to enhance the competitiveness of public offering funds and establish a sound long-term investment culture. We will prepare measures for the direct listing of public offering funds, introduce the ‘Didim Fund,’ an asset allocation fund aimed at improving retirement pension returns, and continuously expand investment targets.

Although the situation is challenging, we hope the industry will strive to discover potential investment areas and supply venture capital based on expertise, as well as improve convenience and trust from the investors’ perspective. Investors also need to foster a long-term indirect investment culture that protects their valuable assets and daily lives by using funds rather than short-term investments.

We hope that our financial investment industry can achieve the common goal of nurturing a sound and sustainable fund industry by strengthening mutual cooperation and communication to build strong investor trust. Once again, congratulations to all the award recipients today, and we wish for the prosperity of the Asia Fund Awards and the fund industry.

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