SEOUL — South Korea is preparing to put its capital market on an international stage with the launch of Korea Premium Weeks 2026, a new three-week investor-relations and capital-market event designed to connect Korean companies and financial institutions with investors from around the world.
The inaugural program will run from Sept. 28 through Oct. 16, with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and Korea Exchange (KRX) serving as co-hosts.
Organizers describe the initiative as a flagship platform for discussing the development of Korea’s capital markets while giving global investors a closer look at Korean listed companies.
55 Listed Companies to Join
The event will bring together 42 participating institutions and 55 listed companies, making it one of the country’s largest integrated capital-market investor-relations programs.
Around 25 events are planned across the three-week schedule, combining policy discussions, global conferences, corporate presentations, investor meetings and other programs.
Among the companies scheduled for major investor-relations sessions are technology and industrial heavyweights including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. Other participating companies include Samsung Biologics, Doosan Enerbility, Hanwha Aerospace and Shinhan Financial Group.
From Korea Discount to a More Global Investor Pitch
The launch comes amid South Korea’s broader effort to strengthen the competitiveness and international appeal of its capital markets.
The initiative is part of efforts to address longstanding discussions around the so-called “Korea Discount” — the term commonly used to describe the relatively low valuations sometimes assigned to Korean equities compared with comparable markets.
Rather than focusing solely on individual companies, Korea Premium Weeks is designed to bring government officials, regulators, exchanges, companies and international investors into the same platform.
The organizers’ stated goal is to establish the event as a recurring annual program and a major international communications platform for Korea’s capital market.
Corporate Governance and Market Reform Take Centre Stage
The first week, known as the Core Week, will begin on Sept. 28.
Opening sessions will address subjects including capital-market reform, corporate-governance improvements and foreign-exchange-market reform.
The following day will feature discussions on the vision for a “Korea premium” era, modernization of capital-market infrastructure, potential extensions to trading hours, shorter settlement cycles and ways to strengthen the competitiveness of the KOSDAQ market.
The agenda shows that the event is not simply a promotional campaign for Korean stocks. It is also intended to provide a forum for discussing structural changes to the country’s financial markets.
Global Finance Leaders Expected
International financial institutions will also be represented.
Speakers expected at the opening include Yutaka Ito, commissioner of Japan’s Financial Services Agency; Joud Abdel Majeid, co-head of BlackRock’s Global Partners Office; and Kevin Sneader, Goldman Sachs’ president for Asia-Pacific.
Their participation reflects the event’s emphasis on connecting Korea’s capital market with international investors and financial institutions.
Samsung and SK hynix to Meet Global Investors
Corporate investor-relations sessions will be another major component.
Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are among the flagship companies scheduled to present to international institutional investors, giving overseas investors an opportunity to hear directly from some of South Korea’s most internationally significant companies.
The broader list spans technology, biotechnology, energy, aerospace and financial services, illustrating the range of industries represented in Korea’s listed market.
Korea Follows a Broader Asian Trend
South Korea’s move also follows similar efforts elsewhere in Asia.
Japan has operated Japan Weeks since 2023 under its financial regulator, while Taiwan has also developed Taiwan Weeks as a platform for international financial engagement.
South Korean authorities are using the new event to consolidate capital-market conferences and investor-relations programs that were previously organized separately by different institutions.
The idea is to create a concentrated period when international investors can meet Korean companies, financial institutions and policymakers in one coordinated program.
A Three-Week Push for Global Investor Attention
The event’s Core Week runs Sept. 28–Oct. 2, followed by additional programs through Oct. 16.
According to the official event website, the program will be held at venues including The Grand Lotte Seoul and KRX’s Seoul office, with government, regulatory, industry and international market participants taking part.
For South Korea, the larger objective is to create a regular channel between its capital markets and global investors.
Whether the initiative can change international perceptions of Korean equities will depend on factors beyond a single conference, including corporate governance, market reforms, valuations and broader economic conditions.
But the launch signals a clear effort to put Korean companies and the country’s capital-market reforms directly in front of a much larger global investment audience.
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