Lee Administration's National Growth Fund to Invest in Aerospace and Quantum Industries, Expanding to 14 Sectors

[Financial News] Aerospace and quantum industries will be added to the list of sectors eligible for support from the National Growth Fund being pursued by the Lee Jae Myung administration.
On the 22nd, the Financial Services Commission said it would add the aerospace and quantum industries to the National Growth Fund's eligible sectors, which had previously been limited to 12 advanced strategic industries. The fund's existing supported industries are semiconductors, secondary batteries, displays, biotechnology, robotics, artificial intelligence, vaccines, future mobility, hydrogen, content, and critical minerals.
After a first round of consultations with relevant ministries, the Financial Services Commission prepared and announced for public comment a draft amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Korea Development Bank Act, adding aerospace (satellites, the lunar economy, launch vehicles, and civil aircraft) and quantum (quantum computing, quantum cryptographic communications, and quantum sensing) as industries eligible for support from the National Growth Fund. The fund's eligible sectors are listed in the Enforcement Decree of the Korea Development Bank Act. Under the current framework, the decree must be amended to add sectors.
The government believes the two industries are highly important strategically to the country and require large-scale, long-term investment. The move is seen as reflecting the prevailing climate, including technological competition between the United States and China in the aerospace industry, as the fifth launch of South Korea's homegrown launch vehicle Nuri (KSLV-II) was successfully carried out last July.
Anyone wishing to comment on the draft amendment may submit their views by December 1. The decree will then be finalized and take effect after approval by the State Council.
The National Growth Fund is a large-scale, policy-driven investment fund being established with 150 trillion won over five years to give South Korea's economy a renewed boost. It was created to secure future growth engines by providing funding across the ecosystem of advanced strategic industries. Both government funds and private capital will be invested in the fund. Specifically, 75 trillion won will come from the Advanced Strategic Industries Fund, and another 75 trillion won from the private sector, pension funds, financial companies, and the public.
The National Growth Fund operates a Risk Management Committee to independently review the risks of investment proposals and conservatively assess financial and nonfinancial risks. It is also improving investment efficiency through a rule that restricts the establishment of new funds of a similar nature until delegated fund managers have invested at least 60% of their committed capital in companies.[email protected] Park Mun-su Reporter