Park Yong-man Receiving Untact Farewell Party from Korea Chamber of Commerce Staff

Next Month, Chairman of the Federation to Retire
"Thank You to Chairwoman Lee Seo-hyun for Support"
"Regulatory Sandbox Is the Greatest Achievement"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Park Yong-man, who has led the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) for 7 years and 8 months, bid farewell to the staff.

On the afternoon of the 22nd, Chairman Park held a farewell party with the staff at the KCCI in Jung-gu, Seoul. To comply with COVID-19 prevention guidelines, the farewell party was held in a non-face-to-face (untact) manner, featuring a farewell video from the employees and hearing Chairman Park’s reflections, making it a modest event. Afterwards, Chairman Park is expected to pack up his office and step down from most of his duties as the head of the economic organization.

A KCCI official stated, "It is the first time in 20 years since the late Chairman Kim Sang-hwa that a chairman has completed his term and retired," adding, "The staff quietly prepared a separate farewell party to honor Chairman Park for his hard work."

After retirement, Chairman Park is known to plan to devote more time to volunteer activities he has consistently engaged in. In his recently published essay collection, Because Even the Shade Is Life, he revealed his volunteer connection with Lee Seo-hyun, Chairwoman of the Samsung Welfare Foundation. In the essay, he said, "When Doosan Corporation was sold and we could no longer support clothing for the orphanage, I contacted Lee Seo-hyun, then Vice President of Cheil Industries, who was a competitor at the time. Despite my shameless request as a competitor, she readily supported us without hesitation," adding, "Since then, the support has continued, and I am deeply grateful."

At the retirement press conference held on the 18th, Chairman Park cited the ‘Regulatory Sandbox’ as his greatest achievement during his tenure. The Regulatory Sandbox is a system that exempts or postpones existing regulations for a certain period when starting a new business, a project that KCCI has put great effort into. Chairman Park explained, "What I earnestly appealed for over 7 years and 8 months was that laws and systems must now be changed," and added, "The sandbox was about bypassing laws and systems to start work first and then finding justification to change laws and systems through market validation."

He also said, "Looking at the formation of the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s board this time, they have much better insight to represent the future direction than I do," and "When the next chairman, Choi Tae-won, takes office, he will represent the opinions of large corporations to a significant extent."

Meanwhile, on the 23rd, Chairman Park will hand over the position of Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industry chairman to Chairman Choi at the Seoul Chamber’s general meeting. The term of the KCCI chairman lasts until March 24, when the full members’ general meeting is held.