Financial firms urged to consider environment, society: regulator

SEOUL, Oct. 16 (Yonhap) -- The head of the financial watchdog on Tuesday called on financial firms to think about environmental and social issues in their investment decisions.

Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Gov. Yoon Suk-heun made the remarks at a conference to discuss ways for Seoul to become a city of sustainable finance.

Sustainable finance is a new watchword for investors that integrate environmental, social and governance issues into their investment decisions.

Yoon said the South Korean government is playing a bigger role in sustainable finance because financial service firms are just starting off here.

The regulator said financial firms should upgrade their infrastructure to provide ethical investment funds.

The one-day conference also aims to discuss various challenges facing the financial industry over climate change, the FSS said in a statement.

The conference, named the Seoul International Finance Conference 2018, is jointly organized by the FSS and the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

About 300 financial experts and officials from home and abroad attended the conference, the FSS said.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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