The Korea Exchange (KRX) will increase the number of companies eligible for consulting to support listed companies' corporate governance improvements and corporate value enhancement plan disclosures from 28 to 50.
The Korea Exchange (KRX) said on the 10th that, jointly with the Korea ESG Standards Institute, it will expand implementation of "corporate governance improvement consulting." Launched in Sep. last year for a total of 28 companies—16 on the KOSPI and 12 on the KOSDAQ—the program will expand support to up to 50 companies this year.
The consulting proceeds by reviewing each corporation's current governance status, presenting indicators that need improvement, and supporting their use in establishing and disclosing corporate value enhancement plans. Corporations will submit materials, undergo a preliminary diagnosis and interviews, and then receive proposed improvement indicators.
Eligible applicants are listed companies that received B+ or below in the Korea ESG Standards Institute's governance assessment, or that have no rating. However, corporations with market soundness issues—such as those designated as under management, those whose trading is suspended due to substantive review reasons, or those designated as unfaithful disclosure entities in the past two years—are excluded.
If the number of applicants exceeds 50, priority will be given to corporations that plan to disclose corporate value enhancement plans. The exchange plans to conduct consulting sequentially, starting with corporations that have finished preparing materials after selection. Applications will be accepted through the 28th.
An exchange official said, "By expanding the scale of support, we expect to help more listed companies establish rational corporate governance and formulate corporate value enhancement plans," adding, "In the long term, this will raise corporate credibility and contribute to realizing the Korea premium in the capital market."