The New year, Gabjinnyeon, has dawned.

2024 is the year of the Blue Dragon.

The dragon is the only imaginary animal among the twelve Asian zodiac animals that mark each year in a repeating twelve-year cycle. Considered an auspicious animal that can fly and has the power to control wind and rain, the dragon also symbolizes a king.

Also, the blue color symbolizes active and positive spirit combined with a nimble attitude.

As the Blue Dragon represents, I believe 2024 will be a fruitful year where all members of the KFTC will achieve meaningful gains with this progressive spirit.

The external and internal challenges surrounding the economy persist this year. High interest rates are prolonged globally, and weak domestic demand continues domestically. Due to the ongoing economic slowdown, costs and risks may be passed on to SMEs, leading to continued hardships in people’s lives. As profitability deteriorates, anticompetitive practices such as cartels and abuse of dominance are likely to increase, and unfair business practices against SMEs will persist, thereby dampening the economic vitality. At times like this, promoting fair competition in every corner of the economy is crucial for strengthening a free and fair market order. Against this backdrop, we should perform our duties with more focus on the following priorities.

First, we should pay closer attention to people’s lives by being attuned to the needs on the ground. As the President emphasized, SMEs, microbusinesses and the self-employed are the backbone of our economy and the primary focus of our economic policies. It is our important mission, as the KFTC, to level the playing field to help them firmly establish themselves in the economy and maintain stable businesses. To this end, we should enhance communication with those on the ground to identify unfair practices that they find most challenging and to pinpoint areas for improvement that require prompt action. Last year, we achieved improvements in several policy priorities for Gap-Eul relationships, which involve unfair power dynamics. Though we saw regulatory improvements in “commodity price-indexed payment” and “franchisors’ mandatory supplies” that franchisees are required to purchase, systematic monitoring and complementary measures should follow to ensure that people see tangible changes in their lives. We also took strict measures against cartel activities last year, particularly in areas closely tied to people’s lives such as residential conditions, food, health care, and employment. This year, we should act even more swiftly and strictly against cartel conduct and unfair practices in areas like finance and communications, which can cause hardships in people's lives. The two major functions of the KFTC, policy-making and investigation ware separated after the 40 years of its foundation, so investigation bureaus can now more focus on case management. In line with the organizational reform, I request your redoubled efforts to enhance both the speed and quality of handling cases that can significantly affect people’s lives. Given that each and every one of our people is a consumer, consumer protection is another top priority. We should continue to pursue system improvement to make sure consumer protection measures function properly in the market. A regulatory framework should be established to safeguard consumer safety and rights. To tackle the issue of shrinkflation that increases the burden on consumers without their notice, we should provide consumers more information to help them make informed decision. In line with the system improvement, we should enhance monitoring on deceptive business practices that undermine consumer trust in the online market as well as false advertising that cause consumers to suffer losses.

Second, with the digitalization of the economy in full swing, we should do our utmost in establishing fair business practices in the digital market. Platforms are leading the digital transformation of our economy by lowering transaction costs between users while increasing consumer benefits. On the other hand, however, the market monopolization by a handful of platforms is increasingly causing hardships for consumers, microbusiness owners and startups. As a competition and consumer protection authority, we cannot leave their hardships unattended. With our mission in mind, we must act strategically and aggressively to legislate the Platform Competition Promotion Act. While consulting closely with relevant ministries and the National Assembly, we should explain the legislative purpose to businesses and the public bringing all stakeholders on board with the need of the law. The law will prevent monopolistic platforms from leveraging market power by using regulatory loopholes, contributing to a market environment where startups and new entrants can compete with each other on a level playing field, thereby alleviating the hardships of microbusiness owners and consumers. Along with the legislative efforts, rigorous enforcement of the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act (MRFTA) should continue. I request your strict action against any unfair conduct that stifles competition and innovation in digital markets.

Third, rationalizing the regulations for large business groups is an ongoing priority for us. While keeping a close watch on unfair inter-affiliate trades that undermine fair market competition, we should continuously work to rationalize and modernize the large business group regulations to effectively respond to market changes in a more balanced way. As announced late last year, the revision of the Enforcement Decree of the MRFTA is underway to modernize the designation criteria of the same person. We should give full consideration to all opinions collected during the public comment period. Adjustment of the corporate disclosure standards also needs to find the best way through sufficient public discourse, including expert opinion gathering. The revision of the MRFTA regarding CVC (Corporate Venture Capital) and foreign investment to promote venture investment requires coordinated collaboration with the National Assembly as well.

Fourth, building on last year’s efforts, we should continue improving law enforcement system with a more comprehensive perspective. In addition to public enforcement we have focused on, we should now pay particular attention to private enforcement going forward. This means we need to redesign the overall incentive structure of our Compliance Program so that the CP can be successfully implemented as an infrastructure to promote compliance in our society. In addressing unfair business practices, alternative dispute resolution is one of the most important methods to resolve a conflict. By swiftly completing the establishment the Fair Trade Dispute Mediation, we should make sure that the damage of SMEs and microbusiness owners can be redressed more quickly and effectively. Just as lightweight feathers enable a bird to fly, each and every contribution of yours enables the KFTC to make progress. Embarking on a new year, I once again ask for your renewed determination and active engagement. Let’s take a step further toward a freer and fairer competition market this year. At the beginning of 2024, I wish you and your family all the very best in health and happiness, and I hope all your wishes come to fruition.

Thank you.