Jeong Eun-bo: "Overcoming the Korea Discount and Aiming for the World's Top Capital Market"

According to The Financial News, Jeong Eun-bo, chairman of the Korea Exchange (KRX), stated, "We are now at the starting point of overcoming the Korea discount that has persisted for the past 70 years and moving into an era of a Korea premium," adding, "Our goal from now on is to become the world's leading capital market."
At the 70th anniversary ceremony for the opening of the securities market, held in the Crystal Ballroom on the second floor of Lotte Hotel Seoul in Jung District, Seoul, on the 3rd, Jeong said, "We must go beyond Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) 6000 and move toward a premium market based on trust and innovation."
He also presented several key tasks: advancing into a global premium market, leading the shift toward productive finance, and strengthening trust in the capital market.
Jeong noted, "Competition for borderless liquidity among major global markets is intensifying," and continued, "We will push to extend trading hours and shorten settlement cycles in line with global trends, improve systems through inclusion in the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) World Index, and expand English-language disclosures to enhance accessibility for global investors."
He went on to say, "By promoting the establishment of a trading platform for tokenized securities and Security Token Offering (STO), we will respond to the environmental changes brought by the digital transformation of the capital market," adding, "Through these efforts, we will position ourselves as a leading exchange in Asia and ultimately as a global premium market."
KRX also plans to step up its role in driving a shift toward productive finance. Jeong said, "We will support the virtuous cycle of venture capital by revitalizing Initial Public Offerings (IPO) and will continue to run programs that enhance corporate value to actively support the listing and growth of venture companies," adding, "We will play a leading role in strengthening the growth engine of our economy."
To bolster trust in the capital market, he explained, "We will strengthen cooperation with the joint task force on unfair trading and upgrade our market surveillance system by using artificial intelligence (AI)," and added, "We will continuously improve related systems and expand our organization and workforce to ensure the swift resolution of distressed companies."
The event was organized to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the opening of the securities market and to explore the future direction of Korea's capital market beyond KOSPI 6000. Around 300 guests from the National Assembly, government, related institutions, and the financial investment industry attended the ceremony.

jisseo@fnnews.com Seo Min-ji Reporter