[Hello India] India makes fresh overture to lure Korean financial firms

Financial Supervisory Service Gov. Lee Bok-hyun (front row, fourth from left) poses with heads of Korean financial associations and Indian financial regulators during a seminar on investment in India held in Seoul on Friday. Pictured in the back row, from left: Reserve Bank of India Chief General Manager Manoranjan Padhy, India’s Ministry of Finance Deputy Secretary Mohamed Ashraf, Securities and Exchange Board of India Executive Director Ruchi Chojer, Reserve Bank of India Chief General Manager Manisha Mishra and, on the right, National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Chief Investment Officer Rajiv Dhar. (Financial Supervisory Service)

India’s financial regulators boasted their fast-growing economy and young workforce at a rare investment forum held in Seoul on Friday, making a fresh overture to lure Korean investments.

The event, co-hosted by Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service and the Embassy of India here, featured key officials from Indian financial regulatory bodies and drew around 140 executives from Korean financial institutions.

“India is emerging as a global production hub with remarkable growth in its financial sector, driven by rapid digital infrastructure expansion and proactive government reforms,” said FSS Gov. Lee Bok-hyun.

“By combining India’s abundant resources and skilled workforce with Korea’s competitive financial services, both countries can grow together as leading forces in the Asian financial market," Lee added.

Mohamed Ashraf, deputy secretary of India’s Ministry of Finance, outlined India's financial industry and licensing system, noting that the country was among the world’s fastest-growing economies, with gross domestic product projected to grow 8.2 percent in 2024. He added that India’s economic growth rate is expected to more than double the global average of 3.3 percent in 2025, reaching 7 percent during the same period.

According to Ashraf, India's financial sector is broadly divided into banking, insurance and other services. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Finance, oversees the insurance sector, while the Reserve Bank of India regulates both the banking and non-banking financial sectors.

Ashraf highlighted robust growth in India's banking sector, with credit volume expanding by over 11 percent and deposits growing by more than 10 percent annually over the past five years. With digital advances like the Aadhaar biometric identification system and the Unified Payment Interface, financial inclusion has surged, with account ownership per adult increasing from 35 percent in 2011 to 77 percent in 2021.

Given these solid developments, India's banking sector is expected to grow at an average rate of over 14 percent over the next five years.

The insurance sector has also seen substantial growth. Ashraf noted that the number of insurers increased from six in 2001 to 72 today, with total assets under management expected to reach $710 billion this year. Total insurance premiums in India are projected to grow by 7.1 percent annually in real terms over the next five years.

To enhance global competitiveness amid the continued market growth, India raised the foreign direct investment limit in insurance from 49 percent to 74 percent in 2021 and has eased regulations.

Manoranjan Padhy and Manisha Mishra, chief general managers at RBI, discussed the approval process and supervisory framework for banking licenses. Securities and Exchange Board of India Executive Director Ruchi Chojer provided an overview of the Indian securities market and detailed the procedures involved in Foreign Portfolio Investment, a major route for foreign investors in India.

The Indian securities market recently hit $5 trillion, gaining nearly $1 trillion in 2024 alone, making it the world’s fourth-largest, behind the US, China, Japan and Hong Kong. Reflecting growing foreign investor confidence, total assets under custody by FPI custodians climbed to $825 billion in March, up 48 percent from $580 billion a year earlier.

Rajiv Dhar, chief investment officer of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, reviewed India's infrastructure landscape, noting that investments are expected to more than double from $813 billion between 2017 and 2023 to $1.74 trillion from 2024 to 2030. He emphasized India's stable, long-term potential, with inflation at a five-year low of 3.54 percent, a fiscal deficit of 5.6 percent of GDP and one of the world’s lowest external debt-to-GDP ratios at 18.7 percent.

According to FSS data, 12 Korean financial entities are currently active in India, led by eight banks with 14 branches and two local offices. Shinhan Bank recently made a notable move by acquiring a 10 percent stake in Credila, a local non-banking lender, for $180 million.

Mirae Asset Financial Group has established a strong presence in India. In 2023, Mirae Asset Securities acquired Sharekhan Limited, the country's 10th-largest securities firm, becoming the first Korean securities company to acquire a local player and rising to become India’s eighth-largest online brokerage. Meanwhile, Mirae Asset Global Investments, with six local subsidiaries, remains the only independent foreign capital investment firm in India.

Korean institutional investors, including Korea Investment Corp., have also ramped up investments. Sovereign wealth fund Korea Investment Corp. opened its fifth foreign branch in India's financial hub Mumbai in April, and major Korean mutual aid associations recently partnered with Mirae Asset Global Investments to invest in the Indian capital market.

By Choi Ji-won(jwc@heraldcorp.com)