FSS promotes Seoul as financial hub in H.K.

Financial Hub Korea, a unit of the Financial Supervisory Service, jointly hosted the 2012 Financial Hub Seoul IR with the Seoul Metropolitan Government in Hong Kong last week.

Over 200 executives from about 70 global finance institutions attended the event aimed at promoting Seoul’s bid to attract foreign financial companies and become a leading financial hub, officials said.

Participants included John McCormick, chairman of Royal Bank of Scotland Group, Asia Pacific; Wong David See Hong, deputy chief executive of Bank of China; Stephen Lackey, chairman of BNY Mellon, Asia Pacific; and Yoon Chi-won, CEO of UBS AG, Asia Pacific.

The event was bigger than the one held in 2009, which 86 participants from 41 global financial firms had attended, reflecting the increasing interest of the global community in Korea’s financial markets, according to the officials.

“The increasing interest is largely attributed to the recent upgrades of Korea’s sovereign credit rating by Moody’s and Fitch Rating, which reflect Korea’s strong real economy, sound fiscal balance, and strong resilience,” said Fn Hub Korea in a statement.

“As a result, Korea is expected to benefit from lower funding costs and greater interest among global financial investors,” an Financial Supervisory Service official said.

Four companies ― Threadneedle Investments and Hermes Fund Managers based in the U.K., Bosera Asset Management in China and National Bank of Abu-Dhabi in UAE ― signed memorandums of understanding with Seoul City on their entry into IFC Seoul.

During his opening remarks at the event held at the Conrad Hotel, Choi Soo-hyun, head of FN Hub Korea and first senior deputy governor of the FSS, explained measures taken by the Korean government and financial authorities to keep the financial system safe and sound amid deepening worries over the eurozone crisis and an economic slowdown in advanced countries.

Choi also discussed Fn Hub Korea’s efforts to encourage global financial firms to enter the Korean market or increase their investment in Korea.

Participants commented that many influential financial figures attended the event and that it had grown in both size and quality compared to the one held three years ago, according to Fn Hub Korea officials.

By Park Min-young  (claire@heraldcorp.com)