Published : Feb. 8, 2017 - 15:21
South Korea's financial authorities said Wednesday they have started full-scale efforts to promote the trust business with the launch of an inter-agency task force.
The team is tasked with laying the groundwork for drafting a related bill and will include officials from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, the Ministry of Justice and the Financial Services Commission.
Kim Yong-beom, head of the Financial Services Commission's secretariat, speaks to reporters in this undated file photo. (Yonhap)
"In accordance with the social and economic change of the aging population, low interest rates, and a combination of financial services, demand for an active role by the trust business continues to grow," Kim Yong-beom, head of the FSC's secretariat, said at its kick-off meeting.
When it comes to the trust industry, South Korea lags behind the US or Japan.
Kim pointed out that local financial firms use trust just as a tool for the competitive sale of investment products rather than a broad asset management option.
Currently, the nation's trust business is subject to the Capital Market Act.
The task force plans to hold regular meetings for the next four months to review policies to boost the trust market. The government will then submit a bill within this year after joint research by relevant public and private think tanks. (Yonhap)