Hana to name new chiefs this week

Hana Financial Group, Korea’s No. 4 banking group, said yesterday that its in-house committee plans to pick a new head of its bank unit this week following the completion of a takeover of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB).

The move came as Hana Financial last month wrapped up a $3.9 billion deal to buy KEB from Lone Star Fund, and its group chairman Kim Seung-yu offered to resign on Feb. 27.

Hana Financial said that its in-house committee plans to select a new head of Hana Bank, the flagship unit of Hana Financial Group, this week as Kim Jung-tae, the president of the bank, was named to succeed Kim.

It also plans to pick a president of Hana Financial Group after Kim Jong-yeol said in January that he would be stepping down.

Candidates for the two posts, recommended by the committee, need to receive approval from the group’s board and shareholders. Board members will meet on Wednesday and a shareholders’ meeting is slated for March 23.

A new control tower of the group and bank will spearhead efforts to smooth the process of consolidating with KEB.

Under the agreement with KEB’s unionized workers, Hana Financial will run the bank as an independent entity and maintain its current brand and wage system for at least five years.

Chairman Kim told reporters on Saturday that he hopes to maximize the benefits of merging Hana SK Card and KEB’s card business as soon as possible.

“The unions of Hana Financial Group and KEB agreed that it would be good to pursue business synergy as soon as possible in terms of IT operations and card businesses,” Kim said, adding that the merger may be possible within five years.

Hana SK Card is a joint venture between Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom, the country’s top mobile carrier. Yonhap