DGB chief urged to resign after alleged bribery in Cambodia
DGB Financial Group Chairman Kim Tae-oh / Courtesy of DGB Financial Group
By Park Jae-hyuk
DGB Financial Group Chairman Kim Tae-oh is facing growing calls from the bank's union and civic groups to step down. He was indicted without detention Monday for allegedly giving $3.5 million to a Cambodian broker last year to enable DGB's subsidiary, Daegu Bank, obtain a commercial banking license from the Southeast Asian country's financial authorities.
“Getting a license by offering a bribe is a serious crime, as it weakens Korea's credibility and competitiveness in the international community,” said a representative from the Daegu District Prosecutors' Office. “This is the first time for us to apply the Act on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials, which enables punishments of those who bribed brokers.”
Kim's attorney denied the charge, saying the chairman will sincerely participate in his trial to clarify any misunderstandings and reveal the truth.
Daegu Bank's union, however, issued a statement Tuesday demanding he resign immediately.
“If the trial incurs another leadership vacuum, DGB will eternally lag behind its rivals in the competition for survival,” the union said. “Considering the worsening reputation and declining morale among employees, a responsible CEO can only have one definite choice.”
Between 2017 and 2018, DGB suffered from a leadership vacuum as Kim's predecessor, Park In-kyu, was investigated by police on allegations of embezzlement and illegal hiring.
The Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice also issued a statement the same day urging the DGB chairman to step down, and demanding that the group's board of directors punish the executives involved in the corruption scandal.
The Daegu People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy demanded an apology from Kim and other DGB executives involved in the case, even if the allegation is only partially true.
“The prosecutors should conduct a thorough investigation into the chairman, reveal the truth and punish him,” the progressive civic group said in a statement, Monday.
Kim has already been criticized for being reappointed as the chairman in December last year, after engaging in a competition with two other candidates, both of whom were considered to have had no chance of winning.
The recent bribery scandal in Cambodia is therefore viewed as another negative factor against him and DGB's expansion across Southeast Asia, which as chairman he has pursued.
Over the past few years, DGB has pushed forward with its expansion into Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam under Kim's leadership, and so he was selected as the only regional banking group chief who accompanied President Moon Jae-in on his trip to Southeast Asia in 2019.