Fates of financial CEOs up in the air

Over 10 chiefs will end term this year

Euh Yoon-dae KB Financial chairman

Lee Pal-seung Woori Financial chairman

Kang Man-soo KDB Financial chairman

Ha Yung-ku Citibank Korea CEO

Park Jong-won Korean Re CEO

By Yi Whan-woo

Eleven chiefs of major financial companies in the country are due to end their tenures this year and whether or not their contracts will be extended under the leadership of President-elect Park Geun-hye remains unclear.

Three are known for having close ties with outgoing President Lee Myung-bak: Euh Yoon-dae, chairman of KB Financial group; Kang Man-soo, chairman of KDB Financial Group; and Lee Pal-seung, chairman of Woori Financial Group.

According to industry observers, the general meetings of shareholders at these companies in March as well as Park’s potential influence could decide whether they will maintain their posts. Park is scheduled to take office on Feb. 25.

Although Park has stressed she will refrain from unduly using her political influence, speculation has risen that she can play a crucial role in the future of these executives when she is sworn in on Feb. 25.

“No one wants to comment on the issue explicitly because it is politically sensitive, but everyone senses there will be a change under the new president,” said an official at a financial regulation agency who declined to be named.

Euh, 67, will end his three-year term in July. In December, he failed to persuade the company’s directors to buy ING Life Companies’ Korean unit. Euh is a graduate of Korea University. Many believe President Lee, who went to the same university, used his influence to ensure Euh’s appointment at KB, the country’s second largest financial group.

Industry observers, however, speculate that Euh will at least be able to complete his term because it will finish in a few months.

Euh’s future could also affect those of Lim Young-rok, 57, president of KB Financial Group, who began their three-year terms with Euh in 2010. Lim earlier served as vice finance minister

Meanwhile, Kang Man-soo’s three-year term at KDB officially ends in March 2014. Kang, 67, is strongly affiliated with President Lee, having served as the first finance minister under the outgoing administration and as an economics advisor to the president.

Many say that he could finish his term at the state-run bank owing to his successful work on KDB Direct. KDB Direct is an exclusive online banking service that has accumulated over 6 trillion won in deposits since it started in 2011.

Lee Pal-seung, 68, is another alumnus of Korea University and a confidant of President Lee. The CEO of Woori Group is serving his second term, which started in March 2011. Industry observers also say that he may retain his post at the bank, which is owned by the state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Ha Yung-ku may finish his fourth term as president of Citibank Korea. The chief of the U.S. bank’s Seoul branch has reportedly won the faith of officials at the bank’s headquarters, including that of CEO Michael Corbat.

Park Jong-won, CEO of Korean Re, a reinsurance company, will be completing his fifth straight term in July. Park was recognized for helping the firm become the world’s 10th largest reinsurance company. Because of this, he is likely to be promoted as the vice chairman under Won Jong-gyu, the son of Korean Re’s owner who will become the company’s president.

In contrast, Jeonbuk Bank CEO Kim Han has already confirmed his second term at the leading bank in North Jeolla Province.

Other chiefs who will end their terms soon are Kwon Jeom-ju of Shinhan Life Insurance, Byung Jong-yun of Heungkuk Life Insurance, Kim Seok-nam of KB Life Insurance, and Cho Jun-hee of IBK, a state-run bank.