Kim Jeong-kwan, the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy in South Korea, has made a strong statement against the Korea Chamber of Commerce (KCC) regarding the controversy surrounding its recent press release on the overseas outflow of wealthy individuals in Korea. In a post on his social media platform, he condemned the KCC for disseminating information from a consulting firm, Henry & Partners, without proper verification, which led to significant confusion among the public, market participants, and government policies. He expressed sincere apologies to the citizens and announced that an immediate audit would be conducted, emphasizing the need for accountability.

The KCC had released a report claiming that South Korea ranks fourth in the world for the outflow of wealthy individuals, citing high inheritance taxes as a major factor. However, Minister Kim pointed out that the credibility of the data used by the KCC was not adequately verified. Critics have raised concerns about the reliability of the analysis performed by Henry & Partners, suggesting it does not convincingly support the claim that inheritance tax is causing individuals to leave Korea. The absence of a clear causal relationship in the original data has led to accusations that the KCC has misinterpreted the information for its purposes.

Further adding to the controversy, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung also criticized the KCC on social media, emphasizing that generating and spreading fake news for private gain and attacking government policies should be condemned rigorously. He expressed disbelief that an official entity like the KCC would engage in such actions. This situation raises serious implications for public trust in institutions and highlights the need for stricter regulations on information dissemination and verification in South Korea.