Ministry of Health and Welfare Holds First 'National Pension Fund Stewardship Activity Briefing'

Briefing Held at Korea Exchange Seoul Office on September 14

On September 14 at 2:00 p.m., the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced that it held the 'National Pension Fund Stewardship Activity Briefing' for the first time at the Korea Exchange Seoul office. At the briefing session, the National Pension Fund’s stewardship activities and achievements, as well as future plans, were shared.

On the 14th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare held the 'National Pension Fund Stewardship Activity Briefing' for the first time at the Korea Exchange Seoul office.
Photo by the Ministry of Health and Welfare

The National Pension Fund has adopted and implemented the Stewardship Code (the principle of fiduciary responsibility) since 2018 to enhance the long-term stability and profitability of the fund. The Stewardship Code is a set of guidelines that requires institutional investors, such as pension funds, to manage and operate funds in the best interests of the ultimate beneficiaries who own the capital.

Approximately 200 executives and working-level officials from 105 companies attended the briefing, representing about 37% of the companies in which the National Pension Fund invests.

Amid recent changes—including three amendments to the Commercial Act, the introduction of a stewardship code implementation assessment system, and the first-ever revision of the Korea Stewardship Code—market expectations for institutional investors' fiduciary responsibilities are rising. Accordingly, in July, the National Pension Fund introduced a stewardship activity implementation assessment system, following approval by the National Pension Fund Management Committee.

Additionally, since introducing the National Pension Stewardship Code in 2018, the National Pension Fund has been conducting an evaluation of achievements and research on institutional improvements over the past eight years. Considering these research results and the recent changes in the capital market comprehensively, the fund plans to advance to "National Pension Stewardship Code 2.0".

The briefing covered the principles and direction of the National Pension Fund's stewardship activities, key criteria for stewardship responsibilities, priority areas for review, and concrete cases such as major proxy voting activities.

Hyeon Suyeop, First Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, stated in his welcome remarks, "This briefing is a meaningful occasion as it is the first time the National Pension Fund communicates directly with the companies subject to the stewardship activities it has pursued since 2018. We hope that this event will serve to enhance mutual understanding between the National Pension Fund as an investor and its portfolio companies, and ultimately contribute to stable long-term growth for both the corporations and the fund’s returns."

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