Busan attracts three financial firms to BIFC, bolstering foundations for one-stop maritime finance

[Financial News] Three financial firms have newly moved into D-Space, a dedicated space for financial companies at the Busan International Finance Center (BIFC), and are expected to help strengthen Busan’s competitiveness in maritime finance. 
Busan City announced on the 19th that it had attracted three companies to D-Space on the 63rd floor of BIFC: Segyero Ship Finance, a specialist ship finance institution; the Korea Shipowners’ Mutual Insurance Association, which specializes in protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance; and D Investment, selected to manage the National Growth Fund.
With these additions, a total of 10 finance-related institutions will be based at D-Space, including the seven companies already there. They are Citibank Korea, UIB Insurance Brokers, KDX Consortium, DB Securities Co., Ltd., Waterline Partners, Clarksons Korea and Synergy IB Investment.
The city expects the move to increase the diversity of financial firms at BIFC and strengthen the maritime finance value chain.
Segyero Ship Finance provides ship investment and management services as well as financial solutions, while the Korea Shipowners’ Mutual Insurance Association supports risk management for shipping companies. D Investment plans to attract private investment capital and invest in growth companies.
The addition of specialists in ship finance and shipowners’ insurance is expected to create synergies with policy finance institutions based at BIFC, including Korea Development Bank, KEXIM and the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation. This is expected to make possible a so-called one-stop maritime finance service, linking the financial services needed by the shipping and shipbuilding industries—from ship sales and purchases to financing, insurance and risk management. 
The city also expects the companies to create new financial business models through collaboration with existing tenants. Its plan includes providing integrated ship-asset services in cooperation with Clarksons Korea, which specializes in shipping market information, as well as discussing innovative financial businesses such as fractional investment in ship assets and tokenization with digital finance firms including KDX Consortium and DB Securities. 
Building on the latest move, the city plans to develop D-Space into a key hub for the financial industry, going beyond its role as a space for companies to set up offices. It will promote joint projects among resident institutions and support the development of collaborative projects between policy finance and private capital to boost synergies across the financial industry, while also encouraging the creation of high-quality financial jobs.
Mayor Jeon Jae-su said, "The significance of attracting these three companies is that outstanding financial firms with expertise in their respective fields have established a presence in Busan, increasing the diversity of the financial industry." He added, "We will continue to actively attract competitive companies in areas such as marine insurance, digital finance and asset management, and strengthen exchanges and cooperation among institutions centered on BIFC to bring new vitality to Busan’s financial industry."
[email protected] Kwon Byeong-seok Reporter