South Korea's Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol met senior executives from global investment and asset management firms in New York on Tuesday local time, the finance ministry said. The executives expressed hopes for stronger partnerships with South Korea. Koo stressed the country's openness to investment.
Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol held bilateral meetings in New York on Tuesday local time with executives from BlackRock, Apollo Global Management, PIMCO and others, according to the Ministry of Finance and Economy.
Apollo CEO Marc Rowan said South Korea's capital market is gaining global prominence and the influence of Korean institutional investors is expanding. He expressed looking forward to further strengthening strategic cooperation and long-term partnerships with South Korea.
BlackRock COO Rob Goldstein noted that South Korea's foreign exchange and capital market reforms are progressing quickly, with potential to improve global investor access. He added that BlackRock continues to contribute to the South Korean market through investments in client assets and expanded partnerships with institutional investors.
In a separate briefing attended by about 20 executives from 13 firms including Goldman Sachs and BlackRock, Koo said, "South Korea's doors to investment are always wide open." He encouraged investors to raise difficulties or suggestions and pledged to address unreasonable regulations promptly, while outlining reforms in corporate governance, commercial law revisions and tax incentives for dividends. Koo noted the KOSPI has more than doubled since President Lee Jae Myung's administration began in June last year.
The meetings are part of Koo's U.S. trip ahead of Group of 20 finance ministers' meetings and the annual International Monetary Fund and World Bank gatherings in Washington, D.C. South Korea has begun an eight-month inclusion in the World Government Bond Index to help stabilize its bond and foreign exchange markets.
