The government plans to expand the National Growth Fund's operating 규모 to 40 trillion won a year from next year and to more than 200 trillion won in total over the next five years. Policy financial institutions are also increasing financial support for regional industries, supplying 95.8 trillion won to companies outside the Seoul metropolitan area through October this year.

The Financial Services Commission said on Thursday it held the second "Policy Finance Companion" event at Daegu EXCO with six policy financial institutions, including the Korea Development Bank, the Industrial Bank of Korea, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, Korea Trade Insurance Corp, the Export-Import Bank of Korea and the Korea Technology Finance Corp.

On the day, the Korea Development Bank and the Industrial Bank of Korea introduced progress and future plans for the National Growth Fund and locally preferential finance. Support provided through October this year under the National Growth Fund totalled 22.7 trillion won, of which 9 trillion won was for areas outside the Seoul metropolitan area. Key examples cited included a 300 billion won loan to expand vaccine research and development and production facilities in North Gyeongsang province, and a 220 billion won loan to build a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode material plant in Daegu.

The supply of regional policy finance is also expanding. Four institutions, including the Korea Development Bank, the Industrial Bank of Korea, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund and the Korea Technology Finance Corp, supplied 95.8 trillion won to areas outside the Seoul metropolitan area through October this year. The non-metropolitan share of total supply was 44.5 percent, above this year's target of 41.7 percent. The government plans to raise the share of local supply to 45 percent by 2028 from 40 percent last year.

About 150 people attended the event, including about 80 companies from the Daegu and North Gyeongsang region. Policy financial institutions listened to regional companies' financing difficulties, provided guidance on institution-specific support programmes and conducted tailored financial consultations.

The FSC and the six policy financial institutions plan to hold Policy Finance Companion events sequentially in major cities by region and to continue on-site communication to support regional companies.

Ahn Chang-kook (안창국), a standing commissioner at the FSC, said the Daegu and North Gyeongsang area was "the backbone of future industries where capabilities in materials and components for advanced industries such as semiconductors, mobility and robots are concentrated."