(Aug 19): South Korea is looking to create a new financial centre outside the capital Seoul, as the government moves to ease over-concentration in the greater metropolitan area, which is home to more than half the country’s population.

One candidate being considered is Jeonbuk, a province about 200 kilometres south of Seoul, which is already home to the National Pension Service, which manages more than US$1 trillion (RM4.06 trillion). The NPS relocated its headquarters to Jeonbuk in 2015.

At a committee meeting, government officials and financial industry leaders discussed a plan to develop a new financial hub, including how to evaluate whether Jeonbuk was a suitable candidate, the Financial Services Commission said in a statement on Wednesday.

The drive by the administration of President Lee Jae Myung to balance overall national development and ease the concentration of business, people, and jobs in Seoul mirrors steps elsewhere to establish additional financial and administrative hubs. 

Japanese lawmakers approved a bill in July to designate one or more regions as a backup if Tokyo is incapacitated by a disaster. China called earlier this year for greater efforts to develop the metropolis of Xiongan near Beijing to serve as a release valve for the crowded capital. In India, authorities are pushing for further development of GIFT City, a financial hub that’s several hours away by air from the traffic-choked streets of Mumbai.

The government will “encourage financial market innovation, establish infrastructure that complies with global standards, and vitalise the capital market to be more foreign investor friendly”, to foster a solid financial hub, the statement said. 

The committee will also “actively support” the overseas expansion of local financial institutions and boost communication with global financial firms operating in South Korea.

A panel made up of officials, academics and industry experts will evaluate Jeonbuk’s potential to grow into a global financial hub and its ability to attract domestic and international financial institutions. The government has also announced plans to build a massive new chip hub in the far south of the country.

In 2009, South Korea designated Seoul and Busan as financial hubs. Seoul ranked eighth and Busan the 23rd financial hub globally in March this year, according to the Global Financial Centres Index 39.

Uploaded by Tham Yek Lee