Top Financiers Meet in Seoul

Chmn. Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase Co. surprised at quick recovery of Korean economy

Chairman Jun Kwang-woo of National Pension Service, shakes hands with Chairman Jamie Dimon of JC Morgan Chase & Co. of the United States at their meeting over lunch on May 2 in Seoul.

Chairman Jun Kwang-woo of the National Pension Service met with Chairman Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase Co. at his office on May 2 to discuss financial issues both in Korea and worldwide and shared a lunch together after the meeting.
The U.S. financier is on a tour of Asia to take a close look at the financial markets in the region and find investment opportunities for his bank, which is one of the largest in the United States.
Dimon said he did not have any concrete matters to discuss with Chairman Jun, who he referred to as his “old friend,” during their meeting, when asked by reporters if he and Jun exchanged opinions on possible new business deals between their respective financial institutions. Chairman Jun agreed with Dimon, saying that no new business deals were discussed at the friendly get-together and that NPS and JP Morgan Chase already have sizable deals between them.
Jun said their discussion centered around how the Korean economy has been surprising in overcoming the crisis and their optimism on the world economy’s future. The NPS chairman also said Chairman Dimon thinks President Obama has a great chance to be reelected next year, and he got the impression that the U.S. financier would turn down the offer to be the secretary of treasury if it came up because he has to give his all to perform his current job.
Dimon later called on Cheong Wa Dae, the presidential office, and met with President Lee Myung-bak. Dimon entered Wall Street as an assistant to Sanford Weill, former chairman of American Express, and later became CEO of Salomon Smith Barney, an affiliate of the Citibank Group after the successful merger. Dimon, as CEO of Bank One, engineered the bank’s merger with JP Morgan and took over as chairman of JP Morgan Chase Co.
Dimon is considered a strong candidate to take over from Secretary Timothy Geithner when he steps down. He left for Indonesia on May 3 to continue his Asian tour in search of investment opportunities.
During his meeting with reporters at Lotte Hotel, Dimon said the recovery of the Korean economy is on a fast track and is strong, adding that many Korean businesses have been doing exceedingly well, including Hyundai Motor and Samsung Electronics. “The Korean economy has great potential for growth and has been growing fast,” the U.S. banker said.
Dimon said the U.S. economy would not experience a double dip recession, considering the jobless rate. He also said the world economy is on the positive side in overall terms, judging from the progress of its rebound from the crisis, although it may see some rough spots along the way. He pointed out the price of oil as one of the impediments for the world’s economic growth.
In addition, Jun said, the NPS witnessed a rapid surge in the number of voluntary subscribers and those who declare their taxable incomes voluntarily for their pension plans, as a result of their year-long campaign drive to enlist more subscribers.
“On the heels of these achievements in recent years, we are determined to expand and upgrade our customer service this year,” Jun said.
“In the first place, we will remain committed to bolstering our foundation to gain greater trust from the public by improving our services in a wide range of areas. In this regard, we are moving to launch an emergency capital loan program for beneficiaries, while our new policy agenda to get closer to our customers includes a systematic post-retirement financial planning service and a high-end benefit payment service.
“Secondly, our new policy focus will shift to the underprivileged members of society who suffer a wide range of disabilities. As the NPS has been designated as the sole public agency to conduct the mission of disability assessment on behalf of the government, we are ready to provide more practical assistance to the disabled population from this year.
“Thirdly, we will relentlessly endeavor to nurture a global-scale management competency in our organization that would match the highly-celebrated status of the NPS fund as the world’s fourth-largest public pension fund.
“We believe that it is our mandate to foster our fund to become a globally-touted premiere pension fund institution by enhancing our competitiveness and expanding the organization by devoting ourselves to global investment,” Jun said. nw


Photo on Courtesy of National Pension Service