Woori Financial Group announced on June 19 that it held the inaugural meeting of the Woori Financial Future Foundation at the Woori Financial Group headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul on June 17.
The Woori Financial Future Foundation is a non-profit foundation which promotes sustainable growth at a time when financial companies’ social responsibilities and roles are needed more than ever. It also aims to actively participate in ESG management, the group’s management strategy.
At the inaugural general meeting, Woori Financial Group Chairman Sohn Tae-seung, as well as representatives of all Woori Financial Group affiliates such as Woori Bank and Woori Card, participated as promoters.
They deliberated and decided on major issues such as the adoption of the purposes of establishment, investment in the foundation and business plans.
Woori Financial Group is scheduled to officially launch the foundation in July following establishment procedures such as the approval of foundation establishment and the registration of the foundation.
The foundation will provide professional and multifaceted support for a better future such as support for self-reliance and growth, welfare and culture of the vulnerable and marginalized and making an improvement to their living conditions.
“Woori Financial Group has experience in running the Woori Multicultural Scholarship Foundation established in 2012,” Woori Financial Group Chairman Sohn said. “The Woori Multicultural Scholarship Foundation has established itself as an excellent non-profit foundation.
We will take the lead in creating a warm-hearted society through support for the underprivileged.”
Woori Financial Group has established the Woori Financial Future Foundation which promotes the group's joint public interest projects on a large-scale, the Woori Multicultural Scholarship Foundation that promotes support projects for multicultural families, and carried out public service projects specialized for business types of 15 group affiliates.
They will create synergies, laying the foundation for sustainable growth and taking the lead in fulfilling the group’s social responsibilities.
Meanwhile, Woori Financial Group said on June 10 that Chairman Sohn met with British Ambassador to Korea Colin Crooks at the Woori Financial Group headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul on June 9 to discuss how to promote international cooperation in coping with the climate crisis and accelerating natural recovery.
In this meeting, Chairman Sohn introduced Woori Financial Group’s achievements in ESG management aimed at overcoming the climate crisis and promoting natural recovery. He also explained the group’s efforts to spread eco-friendly finance such as financial support for new and renewable energy in the United Kingdom.
In particular, Chairman Sohn asked Ambassador Crooks for support and cooperation from the U.K. government, academia and private sector after laying out the group’s international forest cooperation action plan for campaign promotion activities to prevent plastic pollution and achieve a circular economy, deforestation and reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD+).
Ambassador Crooks introduced the British government’s various eco-friendly investment opportunities in the field of green and climate finance.
The U.K. ambassador also highly evaluated Woori Financial Group's various efforts to respond to climate change and promote nature’s recovery.
In addition, he said that he would like to work closely with Woori Financial Group in the areas of carbon neutrality, natural recovery and a circular economy.
Ambassador Crooks said that he was deeply impressed by the long history of Woori Bank and the Petition for the Establishment of Daehan Cheonil Bank which is preserved as a tangible cultural property of Seoul.
Jonathan Woodland, head of climate diplomacy at the British Embassy in Korea accompanied Ambassador Crooks in the meeting.
Woodland emphasized close cooperation with Woori Financial Group in the fields of overseas forestry protection and plastic pollution prevention in the future.
“We hope to cooperate with the United Kingdom which has rich know-how in promoting carbon neutrality and responding to the climate crisis in various fields,” Chairman Sohn said.
“I hope this meeting will offer a lot of opportunities to seek exchanges and cooperation in various sectors such as ESG policies, investment and cultures.”
Woori Financial Group and the British Embassy in Korea also agreed to engage in various global cooperation activities to strengthen eco-friendly financial investment and ESG management and to promote information exchanges down the road.
