Kim Byung-ki, the new floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea and acting party leader, identified the Commercial Act amendment as the top priority for livelihood legislation on the 15th. With the composition of the ruling party's floor leadership nearing completion, it is expected that there will be an acceleration in the processing of livelihood bills such as the Commercial Act amendment. The Commercial Act amendment proposed by the ruling party centers on the 'duty of fidelity to shareholders' and 'mandatory virtual general meetings.'
The floor leader noted after the announcement of the floor leadership selection at the National Assembly, 'There are currently several contentious bills. Trying to tackle them all at once would mean (the ruling and opposition parties) are refusing to engage in dialogue.' He added, 'Amending the Commercial Act is essential for opening the era of KOSPI 5000. Among the livelihood bills, I plan to process the Commercial Act amendment first.'
The Commercial Act amendment, which the Democratic Party has been promoting, aims to expand the duty of fidelity of directors from 'the company' to 'the company and shareholders' and requires listed companies to hold virtual general meetings alongside regular general meetings. The Democratic Party passed an adjusted Commercial Act amendment at the National Assembly, excluding the expansion of separate election of audit committee members and mandatory cumulative voting to attract defectors from the People Power Party, but it was rejected in the National Assembly due to failing to meet the re-voting quorum of 200 members on April 17. Subsequently, the Democratic Party intended to promptly promote a revised amendment including the previously removed provisions for 'separate election of audit committee members' and 'cumulative voting' after the presidential election.
However, while adjusting the legislative pace after the presidential election, the Commercial Act amendment was not passed in the plenary session on the 5th. This has led to speculation that the ruling party's stance on the Commercial Act amendment may have changed since it assumed office. Representative Song Eon-seok, who ran in the election for the floor leader of the People Power Party, stated that 'During last week's meeting between President Lee Jae-myung and business leaders, the president did not mention the Commercial Act amendment even once,' adding, 'There are growing concerns in the economic and market sectors whether the president has changed his stance since being elected.'
In response, the new floor leadership reaffirmed its commitment to promptly pursue the Commercial Act amendment.
The floor leader also emphasized that 'It will not only be addressed through legislation, but we will activate meetings of the ruling party, government, and the presidential office, as well as the Euljiro Committee, to solve issues through social dialogue on livelihood matters.'