"Korean Financial Firms Should Not Just Beat the Drum of Digital Finance"

Technology Session Presentation at the 'Future Changes and Growth Strategies in Finance' Seminar Hosted by the Korea Institute of Finance

As digital transformation accelerates in the financial sector, there is a suggestion that Korean financial companies should not only attempt limited innovation but actively pursue innovation.

Park Young-ho, a partner at BCG, said this at the 'Future Changes and Growth Strategies in Finance' seminar held on the 27th at the International Conference Room of the Bankers' Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul. He stated, "Although the Korean financial sector quickly adopted artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and other technologies, what matters is whether they have actually generated profits and created value through these technologies," adding, "If over-explained, it is merely a digital transformation that only makes noise."

Regarding regulatory authorities such as the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service, Park emphasized, "There are still many regulations, which inevitably reduce the global competitiveness of Korean finance," and stressed, "Flexible regulations are needed, and regulations at the level of fast followers should be introduced."

Kim So-young, Vice Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, is delivering the keynote speech at the Future Finance Seminar hosted by the Korea Institute of Finance on the 27th at the Bankers' Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Financial Services Commission

Baek Yeon-ju, a research fellow at the Korea Institute of Finance, said that technological innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, platforms, blockchain, and virtual assets are accelerating the digital transformation of finance. She added that the role of the financial industry is also expanding and creating social utility. She proposed directions for the development of the financial industry from the perspectives of financial stability, consumer protection, and industrial promotion so that finance can create a virtuous cycle ecosystem that enhances social welfare beyond innovation.

There was an opinion that talent development for digital finance must be properly carried out. Lee Yong-jae, an associate professor in the Department of Industrial Engineering at UNIST (Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology), said that there is a severe shortage of AI-related talent in the financial sector and that there are no incentives for talents to join the financial sector. He emphasized, "Compared to Naver and Kakao, where they pay more and provide autonomy for research, what AI talent would want to go to the financial sector under these circumstances?"

He also argued that "It is not enough to simply hire many developers for development; rather, there should be many people who have secured a large number of developers from the start and can quickly apply them to services," and insisted that the research and development (R&D) environment must be improved.