On the 17th, Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon said the Lee Jae-myung administration's push to establish a Southeast Region Investment Corporation was "a clear breach of a presidential campaign pledge." President Lee Jae-myung had pledged the creation of a Southeast Region Investment Bank as one of his maritime pledges during the presidential race.
That day on social media, Park wrote, "The Lee Jae-myung administration has scrapped the transfer of the Korea Development Bank to Busan and decided to establish the Southeast Region Industrial Investment Corporation," adding, "It's not even a Southeast Region Investment Bank but a Southeast Region Investment Corporation."
He went on to say, "This is a measure that abandons the longstanding hopes of Busan citizens," adding, "In short, it is sugarcoating that turns away from a fundamental solution for regional development."
Park said, "The transfer of the Korea Development Bank to Busan is rooted in former President Roh Moo-hyun's policy of relocating public institutions for balanced regional development, and it has long been Busan's aspiration," adding, "It was a policy that the Democratic Party also pushed together, and the Busan Democratic Party took the lead."
He continued, "The reason the transfer of the Korea Development Bank to Busan is important is that it can play the role of a catfish in transforming the region's industrial structure and fostering new industries," adding, "If the Korea Development Bank is transferred, big tech corporations that say they will invest in the region, including AI data centers, are lining up."
Park also said, "When he was a candidate, President Lee Jae-myung pledged a 'Southeast Investment Bank' instead of a Korea Development Bank transfer," adding, "But at the Cabinet meeting yesterday, they decided to establish not even a Southeast Investment Bank but a Southeast Region Investment Corporation."
He then gave reasons why it should not be established in the form of an investment corporation.
Park said, "The investment corporation model is an already failed model, as seen in the past case of the Korea Finance Corporation," adding, "The government says it chose an investment corporation for speedy funding, but there are various problems."
He continued, "Because it relies on initial equity contributions and limited bond issuances, its funding scale and flexibility are not comparable to those of the Korea Development Bank," adding, "Because it focuses on indirect financing such as equity, bonds, and fund creation, support for policy funds is greatly constrained, and there are clear limits to directly attracting private capital."
Park also said, "When functional overlap or inefficiency with existing financial institutions occurs, there is a risk of reintegration," adding, "There is also a high possibility of high-risk and insolvency due to supervision centered on the competent ministry."
In addition, he said, "With investment focused on revenue, accessibility for regional corporations is insufficient and there are limits to regional spillover effects."
Park said, "The Busan city government has continued to point out these problems to the government and has emphasized that if it is not a Korea Development Bank transfer, it must be an investment bank that plays an equivalent role," adding, "It is simply impossible to accept that the government made such a decision."