[Edaily Marketin KIM SUNG-SOO Reporter Kim Yeon-seo] The Korea Teachers’ Credit Union is accelerating preparations to open an overseas office in New York, U.S., next year.

The Association, which has been conducting overseas alternative investments without an overseas office, plans to establish a direct local presence to expand its network and improve access to investment information.

Budget and Internal Regulations Being Finalized Following Amendment of Articles of Incorporation

According to the Korea Teachers’ Credit Union on the 28th, the Credit Union completed the amendment of its articles of incorporation on July 31 and is currently carrying out follow-up work to open the New York office next year.

Currently, the association is drawing up a detailed budget and revising its internal regulations, while also carrying out all necessary tasks for the office’s opening, including securing office space, setting up the work environment, and establishing information technology (IT) infrastructure.

Staff to be dispatched to the New York office have already been selected. Previously, the Credit Union selected a total of three individuals: two Grade 3 staff members at the operational level and one Grade 2 team leader. This effectively establishes a team of operational staff tasked with directly assessing local investment and market conditions and carrying out overseas investment-related duties.

The establishment process has also been proceeding in stages. The Teachers’ Mutual Aid Association completed internal amendments to its articles of incorporation by October of last year and subsequently obtained approval from relevant committees, including the Budget and Settlement Subcommittee, in November of last year.

The next step involves the Teachers’ Mutual Aid Association reporting the purpose and budget for establishing the overseas office to the Ministry of Education and obtaining final approval from the Minister of Education. Specific operational details—including the Association’s organizational structure (system and rules governing duties and positions), staffing levels, and budget—will also be determined based on the approval results from the relevant committees and the Ministry of Education.

The establishment of the Teachers’ Mutual Aid Association’s New York office is a move intended to address limitations in local networking and access to information that have arisen from the lack of an overseas office. In the alternative investment market, local market trends—which are difficult to gauge based solely on publicly available data—and networks between investors and asset managers can influence investment decisions.

Conversely, since the Teachers’ Credit Union did not have its own local presence overseas, it faced limitations in accessing non-public information through local networks.

As New York is a financial hub densely populated with global financial institutions, asset managers, and alternative investment managers, the Teachers’ Credit Union plans to directly build local networks and enhance access to investment-related information through its New York office.

Strengthening “Local Networks” for Overseas Alternative Investments

Jeong Gap-yun, Chairman of the Teachers’ Mutual Aid Association, determined that establishing an overseas office was necessary to achieve both quantitative and qualitative growth in the Association’s overseas investments.

Given that major institutional investors such as the National Pension Service and the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) have already established overseas offices in key regions like the U.S., the U.K., and Singapore to strengthen their global network capabilities for overseas investments, the Teachers’ Credit Union determined it needed to follow suit.

Chairman Jeong stated, “While 60% of the Teachers’ Credit Union’s assets under management are in overseas investments, the schedules of our staff conducting overseas due diligence are so tight that they often have to sleep in cramped quarters for 4 nights and 6 days, making it difficult for them to focus on their work.” He added, “I believe that in order for the Credit Union to identify sound investment opportunities, we must create an environment conducive to doing so, which is why we decided to establish overseas offices.”

In fact, overseas alternative investments have long contributed to boosting the Teachers’ Credit Union’s rate of return. As of last year, the Teachers’ Credit Union’s overseas assets had expanded to approximately 43 trillion won (about 61% of total assets). This is the result of a steady annual increase in their share, up from just 11 trillion won—representing 42% of total assets—in 2018.

These overseas assets played a key role in enabling the Teachers’ Mutual Aid Association to achieve a fund management return rate of 11% in both 2024 and 2025. In 2024, in particular, the assets that recorded high double-digit returns were all overseas assets: △ overseas stocks (30.9%), △ overseas financial alternatives (corporate finance) (19.9%), and △ overseas infrastructure (18.7%).

This stands in contrast to domestic assets, whose returns at the time were generally in the single digits or negative. Returns by domestic asset class were as follows: △Domestic infrastructure: 9.1% △Domestic real estate: 7.2% △Domestic alternative finance (corporate finance): 6.4% △Domestic bonds: 5.9% △Domestic stocks: -5%.

However, the opening of the New York office next year has not yet been finalized. Currently, following the completion of amendments to the articles of incorporation, practical preparations—including the budget, internal regulations, office space, and IT infrastructure—are underway. The organizational structure, staffing levels, and budget will be finalized based on the approval of the relevant committees and the Ministry of Education.