Ex-lawmaker to lead life insurance association

By Lee Min-hyung

Jeong Hee-soo, president of Korea Insurance Institute

Jeong Hee-soo, president of Korea Insurance Institute, will start his three-year term as chairman of the Korea Life Insurance Association (KLIA) next week amid hopes that he can enhance communication with financial authorities to cope with growing uncertainties in the local insurance industry.

The former third-term lawmaker will take office Dec. 9 after the association appoints him as the 35th chairman of the KLIA during a general meeting slated for Friday.

Jeong is an economic expert with a doctoral degree in economics from the University of Illinois. He was chief of the National Assembly Strategy and Finance Committee between 2014 and 2016 while serving his third term as a lawmaker.

After ending his political career, he was appointed as leader of the institute in December 2018.

The insurance industry expects Jeong to communicate with financial authorities better than his predecessors due to his political experiences. Incumbent KLIA Chariman Shin Yong-kil is from the private insurance sector, working as the head of some major life insurance firms here, including KB Life Insurance.

With authorities toughening regulations in recent years, there have been growing calls for appointing a former bureaucrat or politician as the next leader of the association, as they are more capable of sharing the voices of the industry with authorities than those from the private insurance sector.

“The industry is losing momentum for growth and is faced with mounting challenges due to the prolonged low interest rates and toughening competition,” an insurance industry source said. “We want Jeong to enhance communications with authorities for the industry to continue its sustainable growth.”

Despite his lack of experience with financial authorities, Jeong is receiving a favorable response from the industry due to his strong communication skills as a former politician. He is also recognized for his macro-level understanding of the insurance industry owing to the two years he served as head of the insurance institute.