Seoul City Holds Investment Attraction Battle Targeting FSC and Global Financial Institutions in New York

Financial Supervisory Service and Financial Companies Collaborate in Overseas Investment Attraction Campaign
Attracting Investments with Attractive Consumer Markets and Excellent Human Capital
Kang Cheol-won "Enhancing Korea's Financial Industry Status and Leading Advanced Cities"

The Seoul Metropolitan Government held an investment attraction event (IR) in New York to enhance the international status of Korea's financial industry and strengthen Seoul's competitiveness as a financial hub. The event served as an opportunity to promote Seoul's investment environment, introducing support services for overseas financial institutions such as the Seoul International Financial Office, and actively engaged in attracting foreign financial institutions.

On the 19th, Seoul announced that Deputy Mayor for Political Affairs Kang Cheol-won, along with the Financial Supervisory Service, Busan International Financial Promotion Agency, Korea Exchange, Korea Investment Corporation, and others, held an investment attraction event in New York on the 16th (local time) to promote Korea's financial industry and financial hub status.

This New York investment attraction event (IR) was a large-scale overseas investment promotion hosted by the Financial Supervisory Service, with participation from local governments and major financial companies. Representing Seoul, Deputy Mayor Kang introduced "Seoul, a Global Innovation Economic Hub" at the New York event. In his opening speech, Deputy Mayor Kang emphasized, "Seoul is a city with strong brand power in both economy and culture," adding, "As a mega-city with a population of 10 million, Seoul is a global financial hub with an attractive consumer market and talented human capital, showing high growth potential."

The event was attended by over 300 participants, including global asset management firms such as Carlyle Group and Morgan Stanley, overseas investors, and officials from the Consulate General in New York. Seoul promoted its investment environment by introducing 'Invest Seoul,' the city's dedicated foreign investment agency, through meetings with global asset management firms present at the event.

Invest Seoul, launched in 2022, is Seoul's dedicated investment attraction agency that provides one-stop support for the entire investment process, including follow-up investment attraction solutions through experts in tax, legal, and labor fields. The Seoul International Financial Office is a facility established to revitalize the Yeouido financial district in Seoul, providing office space for overseas financial institutions entering Korea, offering guidance on domestic financial and living environments for foreign employees, and hosting networking events among financial institutions located in Yeouido, thereby providing various opportunities for collaboration and growth.

Prior to this investment attraction event, on the 14th in Washington D.C., Seoul discussed cooperation plans for international development cooperation projects with Juergen Vogel, Vice President of the World Bank, sharing efforts to transfer "Seoul's policy know-how" to developing countries. Currently, Seoul is conducting a public contest project (Seoul ODA Challenge) to support official development assistance (ODA) for developing country cities, the first among local governments nationwide. In the open call held in April targeting overseas cities, 95 cities from 31 developing countries worldwide applied. Among them, three cities (Lima, Peru; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Colombo, Sri Lanka) were selected as priority negotiation targets for the project support.

Deputy Mayor Kang stated, "Seoul is seeking cooperation plans to enhance the international status of Korea's financial industry and highlight its strengths as a financial hub, while fulfilling its responsibilities and roles as a global leading city," adding, "We will solidify our position to leap forward as the world's fifth-largest financial center and build a foundation to grow together with developing country cities through our responsibilities and roles as a global advanced city."