Kwon Dae-young Seeks 'Productive Finance' Solutions in the U.S.: "Intensifying Technology Supremacy War Makes Support for National Strategic Technologies Essential"

Visits to Hanwha Philly Shipyard and Nvidia Headquarters
Exploring the Role of Finance in the Global Technology Supremacy Race
Promoting the 'Financialization of Technology' to Drive the Real Economy

Kwon Dae-young, Vice Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, visited Hanwha Philly Shipyard in the United States and the headquarters of Nvidia. Amid the ongoing expansion of the global technology supremacy race from technology to a 'capital war,' his trip to the United States, which is a hub of advanced technology and the innovative venture ecosystem, aimed to proactively explore the role of finance. Through these efforts, he intends to accelerate policies for 'productive finance,' ensuring smooth funding for national strategic technologies and innovative venture companies.

According to the Financial Services Commission on April 30, Vice Chairman Kwon visited New York, Philadelphia, and Silicon Valley in the United States over a six-day period starting from April 26, to inspect the current status of national strategic technologies such as shipbuilding and defense, and to seek ways to foster 'K-Nvidia' and to support domestic startups in securing overseas funding.

On April 27, Vice Chairman Kwon visited Hanwha Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia, where he was briefed by CEO David Kim on the shipyard's operations and personally toured a merchant ship under construction in the dock. The Philly Shipyard is a symbolic base for Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation and was also visited by President Lee Jaemyung last year.

During this visit, Vice Chairman Kwon stated, "In an era when the technology supremacy war influences the economy, industry, and even national security, supporting national strategic technologies such as shipbuilding and defense is not an option but a necessity," and added, "The government, together with policy finance institutions such as Korea Development Bank and Industrial Bank of Korea, will actively support the continued global competitiveness of national strategic technologies."

Afterward, he moved to Silicon Valley on April 28 and visited the IBK Chang Gong Center, where he met with local startups and venture capital investors to assess the overall venture investment ecosystem. He discussed ways to advance the domestic venture ecosystem by examining the entire process from investment discovery to exit. In particular, he reaffirmed the commitment to strengthen productive finance by linking the expansion of risk capital supply and financial support at each stage of growth.

He also visited Nvidia headquarters. On April 29, Vice Chairman Kwon met with executives from the company’s strategic business division to share visions for future industries such as physical artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous driving, and held intensive discussions on fostering 'K-Nvidia' utilizing the 150 trillion-won National Growth Fund. Previously, as part of the K-Nvidia initiative, the Financial Services Commission selected Rebellion, a domestic AI semiconductor fabless (design) startup, as the first company for direct investment from the National Growth Fund, providing a total of 250 billion won in support.

Vice Chairman Kwon also attended the Korea Development Bank (KDB)'s 'KDB NextRound' event held in Silicon Valley, expressing his commitment to promoting the 'financialization of technology,' where finance drives the real economy. At this event, nine startups conducted corporate presentations (IR) to approximately 300 domestic and international investors. Since its launch in 2016, NextRound has supported about 9.2 trillion won in fundraising, making it Korea's largest venture platform.

Additionally, in New York, Vice Chairman Kwon held meetings with the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, Korea Investment Corporation, and National Pension Service to broadly discuss trends in the U.S. AI industry, financial security, export financing, and strategies for securing strategic resources.

Vice Chairman Kwon stated, "In an era where both the technology supremacy war and the investment war are unfolding simultaneously, we will actively support the financialization of technology and the global expansion of Korean companies so that finance can drive the real economy," and added, "We will strive to ensure that the investment principles and culture of Silicon Valley can take root in the domestic market as well."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.