Former FSC chief dubbed new Woori Financial chair

Yim Jong-ryong

Woori Financial Group nominated Yim Jong-ryong, a former Financial Services Commission chairman, as its new chairman Friday, as the nomination committee favored the candidate with public service experience over chief competitor Lee Won-deok, CEO at Woori Bank.

The nomination committee will recommend Yim to the board, and the new chairman’s three-year term will formally begin after the decision is approved in an annual general meeting on March 24.

The new chairman has the burden of addressing a wide range of problems stemming from poor internal control. The affiliates of the financial group failed to detect 69.7 billion won of misappropriation and the negligent sale of high-risk investment fund products linked with Lime Asset Management.

“To overhaul the organization, we concluded that the appointment should bring someone who can assess and reform the organization with an objective viewpoint,” Woori Financial Group said in a statement.

Yim is expected to draw on his experience and networking at financial regulators as financial institutions are highly sensitive to regulatory changes from authorities.

Before his stint at the Financial Services Commission, Yim also served as chairman at NH Financial Group, a career path that Woori says proves expertise in both public and private finance realms.

The other candidates were Woori America chief Shin Hyun-seok and Woori FIS CEO Lee Dong-yeon.

Current Chairman Son Tae-seung said earlier this month that he will not vie for another term.

Son received a reprimand warning from the Financial Services Commission in November for the improper sale of Lime funds.

The group emphasized that the nomination procedure was conducted in a fair and transparent manner as financial institutions have often been blamed for an opaque decision-making process.

“It was the first appointment of a chairman after the group was fully privatized,” the company said, “Therefore, we tried our best to ensure independence and transparency for the nomination committee.”

BY PARK EUN-JEE [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]