Korea Exchange Chair Jeong Eun-bo said, "Right now, Korea's capital market stands at a pivotal crossroads toward an advanced market," adding, "We will do our best to foster a market environment so that it can lead to a 'Korea premium,' a 'new normal,' rather than a 'Korea discount' (the undervaluation of the Korean stock market)."
On the 29th, the Korea Exchange held the "Korea Capital Market Conference" at the Westin Josun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. About 1,000 people, including major domestic and foreign institutional investors, industry officials from securities and asset management, index providers, and retail investors, took part in the event.
At this conference, starting with an opening address by Chair Jeong Eun-bo, congratulatory remarks followed from Financial Services Commission Chair Lee Eok-won, National Policy Committee floor secretaries Kang Jun-hyeon and Kang Min-guk from both parties, and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Vice Chair Michael Harris. An opening ceremony wishing for "KOSPI 5000" was also held.
Through his opening address, Jeong said, "The KOSPI is hitting all-time highs day after day, and valuation (corporate value) is steadily improving, breaking away from the chronic Korea discount," adding, "The demand base has also become more solid, backed by foreigners' 'Buy Korea' stance and the continued inflow of funds waiting on the sidelines."
Jeong said he would consistently push to enhance corporate value for a better domestic capital market. He said, "We will further refine the Value-up Program so that corporations' performance and long-term growth strategies are disclosed in a timely manner with transparency and structure," adding, "Through this, shareholder returns will expand, and corporations themselves will establish rational governance so that shareholder-value management can take root."
He went on to say that to improve the soundness of the initial public offering (IPO) market, the mandatory lock-up commitments of institutional investors will be expanded and the role of lead underwriters will be strengthened. Efforts will also continue to toughen and streamline delisting requirements to prevent market disruption by insolvent and zombie corporations.
Jeong noted, "We will drastically root out unfair trading by strengthening the initial response capabilities of the 'Joint Task Force to Eradicate Stock Price Manipulation.'"
He also pointed out that discussions need to be held on extending stock trading hours in response to global trends. He said, "The Korea Exchange has already begun nighttime trading for derivatives on its own, and the extension of stock trading hours needs to be viewed from a global competitiveness perspective," adding, "This will serve as a steppingstone toward a 24-hour trading system."
He also stressed plans to actively respond to changes in future finance by preparing new products such as token securities (STO) and cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETF), in step with the tokenization of traditional assets and the securitization of digital assets.
On the first day of the event, a total of five sessions were held, starting with a special session celebrating the KOSPI's record high: "A new future for Korea's capital market," "Growth and a new leap for Korea's exchange-traded products (ETP) market," "Derivatives market innovation across boundaries," and "A future opened by indexes and data."
On the 30th, the "New investment landscape opened by digital assets" session will examine changes in the digital asset investment environment and hear domestic and international proposals for the successful introduction of new products such as cryptocurrency ETFs. Min Byeong-deok, a lawmaker of the Democratic Party of Korea who sits on the National Policy Committee, will deliver a keynote speech.
Through this conference, the Korea Exchange plans to ensure that the various views discussed are reflected in action plans to advance Korea's capital market and strengthen its competitiveness.