and their respective buildings. Most prominently, the National Assembly Building is located to the far west of the island. Construction of the building commenced in 1969 and was completed in 1975 and sits atop the site of the former Yeouido airport. Prior to the opening of the National Assembly Building the seat of government was located at the General Government Building which was situated within the grounds of Gyeungbok Palace. Due to its national importance, the area surrounding the National Assembly Building and its adjoining buildings is home to a significant police presence. Despite this, the grounds are usually open to the public and connect to the Han River Park which surrounds the site on three sides. Most of the major South Korean political parties including the Democratic Party and the People Power Party maintain their headquarters in Yeouido, close to the National Assembly Building. Economics Yeouido is considered to be the financial center of Seoul, hosting most of the country's largest financial institutions including: Industrial Bank, Kookmin Bank, Korea Stock Exchange and Federation of Korean Industries, Hana Bank, Shinhan Securities, NH Investment Securities, and Eugene Investment Securities. Most of these institutions are clustered on the eastern side of the island, opposite the political quarter on the western side. Media Given the island's political and economic importance, several major media companies have a presence in Yeouido. These include major newspapers such as Kookmin Ilbo and the broadcaster KBS. However, despite previously having a presence on the island, many other companies including SBS and MBC later left Yeouido. Religion Yeouido is home to one of South Korea's largest churches, the Pentecostal Yoido Full Gospel Church. The church was founded in 1958 and currently has over 480,000 members. Public parks Five parks are located in Yeouido. Notable among these are the Yeouido district of the Han River Public Park and Yeouido Park. Yeouido Park was formed in 1999 through the reclamation of a patch of land, known as Yeouido Square or May 16 Square, which had lain under asphalt for 27 years and was used for various large public gatherings. In addition, a terminal for excursion ferries stands on the Han River shore. Unit of area The "size of Yeouido" is often used by South Korean media as a means of comparison for measuring an unfamiliar area. For example, it may be said that city A in country Y is twice the