This article was published on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 1:55 p.m. on Sept. 15, 2025.
As the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) expands inspections of private equity fund (PEF) managers, observers say additional inspections are likely to focus on PEF managers that received investments from the National Pension Service. The FSS appears to be pressuring PEF managers by targeting links to the National Pension Service.
According to investment banking industry sources on the 15th, the FSS has been conducting an on-site inspection of PEF manager Stonebridge Capital since this month. It is the second inspection following last month's on-site inspection of MBK Partners. MBK Partners is also undergoing additional investigation. The inspection of Stonebridge Capital was not reportedly prompted by any specific problematic issue.
Industry analysts say one of the main criteria the FSS likely used to select managers for inspection is connection with the National Pension Service. MBK Partners and Stonebridge Capital were selected as domestic PEF discretionary managers for the National Pension Service in 2024 and 2022, respectively, and received investment funds. The inspection is expected to focus on how the National Pension Service's investments were used.
The FSS's move appears to reflect the intentions of FSS Governor Lee Chan-jin. Lee has reportedly said that the National Pension Service, which has long prioritized boosting returns, should consider social responsibility to a corresponding degree.
While serving as a member of the National Pension Service's fund management committee in 2021, he publicly criticized MBK Partners' handling of Homeplus. He said, "Companies like MBK typically restructure a company and then 'eat and run,'" and "There could be criticism asking why the National Pension Service is funding such 'eat-and-run' companies."
Financial authorities are reportedly examining in their additional probe how MBK Partners raised funds when it acquired Homeplus in 2017, including how it gathered limited partners (LPs) for the fund and the leveraged buyout financing methods. In the earlier inspection, authorities examined allegations of fraudulent trading that the MBK Partners management issued short-term bonds while hiding preparations to file for corporate rehabilitation for Homeplus.
A source in the investment banking industry said, "Until now the National Pension Service prioritized returns as the main criterion for selecting PEF managers," and added, "The new FSS governor seems to be bringing the National Pension Service in as a supervisory partner with the view that investments that prioritize only returns should be avoided."
At a regular executive meeting on the 26th of last month, FSS Governor Lee Chan-jin reportedly instructed to "strengthen cooperation with the National Pension Service." He is also said to have added that "the National Pension Service should actively exercise shareholder rights to strengthen the rights of minority shareholders."
Because of this, managers that received investments from the National Pension Service are on edge. After Stonebridge Capital, inspections of other managers are fully possible. In May, the FSS announced plans to expand annual inspections of PEF managers to five firms. It cited investment size, compliance with regulations, and fulfillment of social responsibility as criteria for selecting inspection targets.