Ministry of Health and Welfare: "We Will Establish the Legal Basis for the National Pension's Foreign-Currency Bond Issuance as Quickly as Possible" (2026.01.26)

(The Pension Future Forum's steering committee understands that CPP's foreign-currency bond issuance is being carried out in a financial environment, and for purposes, that are very different from what is being discussed in our country, particularly regarding the National Pension. We will state our position on this at a later time. What can be made clear right now, however, is that officials at the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Pension Service have a tendency to severely distort the actual state of the Canada Pension Plan (CPP)'s overall operations by citing only a handful of fragmentary facts, rather than properly informing the public of the full picture. We wish to inform you that the Pension Future Forum is watching how this situation develops with considerable concern.)

(Seoul = Yonhap Infomax) Reporter Kim Ji-yeon = The government stated its position that it will establish the legal basis for the National Pension's foreign-currency bond issuance as soon as possible. Baek Jin-ju, Director of the National Pension Finance Division at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, took part as a panelist in a seminar titled 'Diversifying Foreign-Currency Funding for Pension Funds' Overseas Investment,' held on the 26th at the National Assembly Members' Office Building, and said, "it is difficult to say specifically at what point the National Pension will issue foreign-currency bonds," while adding, "we plan to establish the legal basis as quickly as possible, first of all." He said, "in the process of preparing for the various suggestions related to foreign-currency bond issuance, we will think them through thoroughly and examine concrete plans."

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He noted, however, that "how the won leaves the country is important," pointing out that "differences can arise depending on the funding method used — whether through conversion in the spot foreign-exchange market, through hedging via forward contracts, or through the issuance of foreign-currency bonds." He also mentioned the case of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) issuing foreign-currency bonds, saying, "the National Pension should also refer to this."

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Yoon Seon-jung, Professor at Dongguk University, said he supports the National Pension's foreign-currency bond issuance, but pointed out that the scale of issuance needs to be controlled.

He expressed concern, saying, "since issuing foreign-currency bonds entails foreign-currency liabilities, the fund's total exposure (the scale of total assets) could expand," and "if the surplus won funds left over from the funding process are invested in bonds, it could help maintain the ratio of risk assets to safe assets, but this could also generate excess demand for domestic bonds."

He added that "if foreign-currency bonds are issued, strategic judgment on the currency-hedge ratio and the standard for the issuance amount will be important."

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