"To build trust that Korea is a reliable investment market, successful cases must emerge and spread from local U.S. sites."
Shin Byeong-muk, head of the Korea Exchange New York Office, recently met with MoneyToday in New York, stating, "The time has come for so-called 'superstar' success stories to emerge—where investors achieve high returns solely through investing in Korean companies and make big profits with K-market funds." Shin, who has been informing local investors in New York about the value-up program and corporate conditions, recently conveyed that he is keenly aware of growing global interest in the value-up program policy.
Even in New York, the world's most developed financial hub where capital markets are most advanced, K capital markets have become a hot topic. Multiple executives from the financial investment industry whom MoneyToday met on Manhattan in New York agreed that inquiries about the value-up program and individual companies have increased significantly, reflecting a surge in demand to deeply understand the Korean capital market as a medium-to-long-term investment destination.
According to Shin, there is a growing trend among local investors to examine how Korean companies can improve their ROE (return on equity) before deciding whether to invest. Some even compare Japan's value-up program with Korea's policies and suggest that "ROE target figures should be provided." Shin noted, "Requests to present plans for improving ROE—such as raising corporate capital efficiency to push ROE above 8%—have increased sharply. Even without active outreach, we receive specific inquiries about Korean companies at least one or two days a week."
He added, "Since the domestic market index rose significantly this year, there is strong interest in whether the value-up program can steadily boost stock returns. U.S. investors have witnessed how Japan's value-up program successfully strengthened corporate profitability, so they hold similar expectations for Korea."
In May this year, the introduction of a unified account system for foreigners made it easier for them to directly invest in Korean stocks, raising interest and understanding of Korean companies. The channels through which investor opinions are received have also diversified. Starting in September, foreigners will be able to invest in ETFs (exchange-traded funds) through the unified account system, further expected to increase interest in K capital markets.
Growing interest in the Korean market has become both a new challenge and opportunity for domestic securities firms established around the world. They are entering a leap period to evolve into so-called 'K capital market investment hubs' that go beyond simple stock brokerage to support investors' learning about K capital markets and corporate site visits.
Jin Sang-won, head of NH Investment & Securities New York Office, said, "In the past, demand focused on major representative stocks like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, but now there is stronger demand even within the same semiconductor sector to identify individual companies." He added, "This reflects a view that the Korean market should be seen not merely as a trading (stock transaction) market but as one for long-term investment." He further noted, "As institutional investors increasingly request K-company site visits and industry trend research reports, the role and importance of New York offices as 'Americas Investment Hubs' have grown accordingly."
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