Foreign institutions like the FSS’s new direction

FSS Gov. Zhin Woong-seob, middle, chats with Ambassadors John Prasetio of Indonesia to Korea, left, and William Paterson of Australia on Tuesday at the FSS Speaks 2015 at Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, central Seoul. [NEWSIS]

Foreign financial institutions operating in Seoul reacted positively to changes in examination and enforcement practices planned by the Financial Supervisor Service (FSS).

At the seventh FSS Speaks meeting on Tuesday, as many as 300 executives and employees of non-Korean financial firms gathered to listen to the FSS plans announced by Gov. Zhin Woong-seob.

“We are working on financial sector reform measures to overcome them and revitalize the industry,” said Zhin. “First, we are going to bring significant changes to our examination and enforcement practices. With respect to examinations, the focus will no longer be on uncovering violations or imposing sanctions.

“Instead, our primary motivation will be to help financial firms identify areas of vulnerability and come up with solutions. This will mean less frequent examinations and more intense ongoing monitoring.”

CEO Damien Green said MetLife Korea strongly supports the Korean government’s efforts to shift financial regulations to a principle-based framework.

Such a shift will help bring more efficiency, transparency and autonomy to the financial sector in Korea, he added.

BY SONG SU-HYUN [song.suhyun@joongang.co.kr]