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BackACGA at the ICGN Korea Conference and meetings with policymakers
2026-04-14
On 14 April, ACGA participated in the ICGN Korea Conference 2026, hosted by the Korea Exchange (KRX) and ICGN in Seoul. Helena Fung, ACGA’s Head of Research and Advocacy, spoke on the panel “Governance as a Strategic Sustainability Lever.” She highlighted rising board-level focus on sustainability governance across Asia, with Korea accelerating through the Corporate Value-Up Program and stronger fiduciary duties. Leading companies, particularly in finance and tech, are shifting from compliance to strategic performance by integrating climate, cyber, and AI risks into oversight, capital allocation and incentives, though progress remains uneven by sector and market.
Helena and Yura Ahn, ACGA’s recently appointed Korea Research Head, also met separately with Korea Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and joined ICGN-organised group meetings with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and National Assembly members. The discussion with FSS covered the ongoing revision of Korea's Stewardship Code and its alignment with the Value-Up Programme. Upcoming changes to compensation disclosure requirements were also discussed, including the introduction of comparative reporting on director remuneration against company performance, with details subsequently announced in Korean on the FSS website, effective this month.
The FSC meeting addressed Korea’s sustainability disclosure roadmap (ISSB/KSSB-aligned climate and ESG reporting); updates to the Stewardship Code (currently in process), and the Ministry of Justice’s Code of Conduct for Directors, published December 2025 to offer guidance on directors’ expanded fiduciary duties under the 2025 Commercial Code amendments.
At the roundtable meeting at National Assembly, ACGA met two members of the National Assembly's K-Capital Market Special Committee (previously named KOSPI 5000 Committee) to discuss the implementation of Korea's Commercial Code amendments and ongoing AGM reform priorities. Legislators acknowledged concerns raised by foreign institutional investors regarding AGM concentration and access to timely corporate disclosures and expressed strong interest in receiving further input from international investors to inform their legislative agenda.
Helena and Yura Ahn, ACGA’s recently appointed Korea Research Head, also met separately with Korea Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and joined ICGN-organised group meetings with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and National Assembly members. The discussion with FSS covered the ongoing revision of Korea's Stewardship Code and its alignment with the Value-Up Programme. Upcoming changes to compensation disclosure requirements were also discussed, including the introduction of comparative reporting on director remuneration against company performance, with details subsequently announced in Korean on the FSS website, effective this month.
The FSC meeting addressed Korea’s sustainability disclosure roadmap (ISSB/KSSB-aligned climate and ESG reporting); updates to the Stewardship Code (currently in process), and the Ministry of Justice’s Code of Conduct for Directors, published December 2025 to offer guidance on directors’ expanded fiduciary duties under the 2025 Commercial Code amendments.
At the roundtable meeting at National Assembly, ACGA met two members of the National Assembly's K-Capital Market Special Committee (previously named KOSPI 5000 Committee) to discuss the implementation of Korea's Commercial Code amendments and ongoing AGM reform priorities. Legislators acknowledged concerns raised by foreign institutional investors regarding AGM concentration and access to timely corporate disclosures and expressed strong interest in receiving further input from international investors to inform their legislative agenda.
