Competition and Corporate Governance in Korea Reforming and Restructuring the Chaebol

The business environment of the chaebol (large corporations in Korea) has changed drastically since the outbreak of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. This book discusses the attempts of the Korean government to remedy structural weaknesses in the corporate sector by launching an aggressive chaebol reform package, supported by the IMF and other international agencies. Its main objective was to restore competitiveness in the corporate sector and to upgrade business conditions to that of international practices and standards.

Competition and Corporate Governance in Korea critically reviews government policy towards the chaebol and provides a comprehensive investigation of the relationship between corporate governance and economic performance as well as the interaction of economic institutions with the chaebols' incentive structure and management behaviour. Policy implications based on objective and rigorous empirical analyses of data on the chaebol are also discussed. Notwithstanding the fact that the chaebol have already undergone considerable governance, capital, and business portfolio restructuring, this volume suggests a road map for further restructuring, and the creation of a new incentive structure to help strengthen chaebol competitiveness.

This richly informative book will appeal to academics and researchers of industrial organization, economics and corporate reform as well as those involved in Asian studies.

Edited by Sung-Hee Jwa, Chairman, President Park Chung Hee Memorial Foundation, South Korea and In Kwon Lee, Independent Research Economist