The Financial Services Commission (FSC) Chairman, Lee Won-jung, announced the approval of 8.4 trillion KRW in funding related to the National Growth Fund during the "National Growth Fund Performance Review and Development Direction Seminar" held on May 18th, 2026, at the KDB IR Center in Seoul. Chairman Lee emphasized that this initiative represents a fundamental shift in the financial paradigm from "conservative management" to "productive investment," aiming to transform finance beyond merely safeguarding assets to actively supporting Korea's growth industries in global markets by sharing risks with companies.

The National Growth Fund is designed as a core instrument for Korea's economic leap, fostering collaboration among public finance, policy finance, and private finance to supply long-term, large-scale venture capital to advanced strategic industries. This strategic approach has already resulted in the approval of significant capital injections across 11 projects. Noteworthy allocations include 3.4 trillion KRW for the Shinan Uyi offshore wind power project, investments in building a sovereign AI ecosystem, establishing AI semiconductor production bases, expanding next-generation secondary battery factories, and direct investments amounting to hundreds of billions of KRW. The Chairman underscored that this paradigm shift is not merely about capital supply figures but fundamentally reorients the financial market towards fostering growth.

Further extending this initiative, a "National Participation Type National Growth Fund" is slated for launch on May 22nd. This public-facing fund is structured to achieve policy objectives of investing in future growth engines while ensuring stability and profitability for public investors, given the nature of public funds. Key features designed to incentivize public participation include income tax deductions, separate taxation on dividend income, and a critical safeguard where the government bears the first layer of loss. Additionally, over 20% of the fund's sales amount is preferentially allocated for low-income individuals.

During the seminar, experts provided insights into the fund's rationale and impact. Ha Geon-hyung, Senior Research Fellow at Shinhan Investment Corp., articulated that the transition to productive finance, underpinned by national risk-sharing, is an inevitable and fundamental economic paradigm shift. He highlighted the critical need for national-level risk-sharing, especially given the high risk associated with Korean startups (only 33.8% survival rate after five years), asserting that national risk-sharing and investment in advanced industries and infrastructure will decisively shape national industrial competitiveness. Lee Byung-yoon, Senior Research Fellow at the Korea Institute of Finance, affirmed that the National Growth Fund aligns with its support objectives by constructing essential infrastructure for advanced strategic industries and acting as a priming agent for private investment. He also evaluated that the fund meets capital input requirements by enhancing investment efficiency through reduced capital costs and by considering capital recoverability, particularly in scaling up advanced industries.

Prior to the seminar, a crucial Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between KDB Bank, BNK Financial Group, iM Financial Group, JB Financial Group, and Suhyup Bank. This collaboration aims to ensure the successful establishment of the National Growth Fund and the proactive discovery of regional growth projects.