Mirae Asset Securities said on the 17th that it held the "2nd Blue Seed Partners Day" at the Four Seasons Hotel on the 15th.
The event was prepared to establish an organic cooperation system between Mirae Asset Securities, the dedicated manager for Blue Seed, and individual managers, and to discuss boosting fund returns and developing the system.
Blue Seed is a retirement pension fund system for small and medium-sized enterprises. It has been in effect since Apr. 2022, and business sites with 30 or fewer regular employees are eligible to enroll. The employer and employees pool their contributions into a joint fund, which is managed and used to pay severance when an employee retires.
The Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service (K-COMWEL) is in charge of operating and managing the system, and the assets will be managed using the investment capabilities of the dedicated managers, Mirae Asset Securities and Samsung Asset Management.
Mirae Asset Securities explained that through an outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) approach, each institution is creating strong synergy by exercising its own expertise and autonomy, and that stable system operation and returns are serving as a good model in Korea's retirement pension market.
Blue Seed achieved pre-tax annual returns of 6.97% in 2023 and 6.52% in 2024. As of the 14th, this year's annualized pre-tax return stood at 9.87%. In addition to stable management of retirement asset returns, employers and employees who enroll in Blue Seed can also receive government financial support and fee waivers.
Yoo Seung-seon, managing director of the OCIO Solutions Division at Mirae Asset Securities, said, "Blue Seed allows professional managers to stably manage severance on behalf of subscribers," adding, "We will do our best to ensure a peaceful retirement for SME employees."
Meanwhile, the Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service (K-COMWEL) established a Retirement Pension Bureau in May and is working to operate the Blue Seed system and expand enrollment. In the National Assembly, a bill to expand Blue Seed eligibility from business sites with 30 or fewer employees to establishments with 50 or fewer or 100 or fewer employees has been introduced and is under discussion.