As a candidate for the next president of the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) included a figure who passed the bar exam in the same year as President Lee Jae-myung (28th) and served as a senior policy expert for the Democratic Party of Korea, the KDIC labor union is pushing back, saying, "A president such as a politician or a legal professional with little relevance to the job would be the first since the corporation's founding." Until now, KDIC presidents have been officials who handled economic policy at agencies such as the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Financial Services Commission.
Union Chairperson Kim Young-heon held a press conference on Jan. 8 and said, "KDIC is one pillar of the financial safety net that protects the precious assets of all 50 million people, including depositors, insurance policyholders, and financial investors, and it is the last line of defense," adding, "The president must have essential qualities such as the highest level of expertise and integrity, and a commitment to ethical management."
Chairperson Kim said, "If a person unfit for KDIC's stature is appointed and it becomes a world only for them, defined by labels such as favoritism, payback appointments, and code-based appointments, we will mobilize all our capabilities to respond forcefully."
KDIC conducted interviews for president candidates on Jan. 5. The candidates included attorney Kim Sung-sik, who passed the bar exam in the same year (28th) as the president; former KDIC standing director Kim Young-gil, who served as a senior policy expert for the Policy Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea; and former KDIC vice president Kim Gwang-nam, an internal candidate. Former Vice President Kim served as co-chair of the Better Economy Committee, a policy advisory body under the Democratic Square Committee, a direct organ of candidate Lee Jae-myung during the last presidential election.
The KDIC president is appointed by the president upon recommendation by the chair of the Financial Services Commission. The Nominating Committee will select two of the three candidates and deliver them to the Financial Services Commission (FSC), and the chair of the Financial Services Commission will recommend one of them to the president for appointment. The KDIC Nominating Committee plans to select and forward two candidates within this month.