Blazing Trail in Finance
During a ceremony marking the company’s 20th founding anniversary held in Four Seasons Hotel Seoul in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, on July 1, Mirae Asset Financial Group Chairman Park Hyun-joo pledged to become a forever innovator, saying “I will create a competitive governance structure that lays groundwork for Global Mirae Asset.”
Citing the quotation of economist Joseph Schumpeter, “The essential fact about capitalism is innovation through the process of creative destruction,” Park stressed that new challenge is also what has been behind Mirae Asset’s growth so far as well as its keyword in the future. He said, “Mirae Asset has been evolving without hesitation by raising South Korea’s first mutual fund, beginning alternative investments which changed the investment method of complete dependence upon stocks and bonds, focusing from the domestic market to the global market, and changing from product-based investment to global asset allocation, as part of its efforts for finance innovation. Such Mirae Asset’s innovation was strange at first but won recognition later and then has eventually become a truism.”
Park announced to begin a large project to support venture startups. He said, “To this end, we will make trillions of won of investment in new renewable energy, highway construction and tourism infrastructure on the southern coast of Korea. We are also planning to have 6,000 hotel rooms in the global market by the end of this year.”
In addition, Park said, “We are not obsessed with size. But, we can increase national wealth by 36 trillion won (US$31.44 billion) when we make a 10 percent profit margin of a total of 360 trillion won (US$314.41 billion) including 110 trillion won (US$96.07 billion) of our asset management firm’s operating assets and 250 trillion won (US$218.34 billion) of our stock and insurance companies’ client assets. In this way, we can also help increase consumption through an increase in incomes and create a virtuous cycle of the national economy.”
Park also pledged to establish a governance structure that allows highly qualified employees to develop their full potential instead of a closed system that gives an opportunity only to a few or owner's family members.
He said, “The young Mirae Asset, which is just 20 years old now, still feels a great thirst in the global market. We will steadily lay a corner stone for Global Mirae Asset until young people, who will create wealth in Korean society, move up in the world so that they can fairly grow in the global market in the future.”