Lee Ji-ho, director general of the Research Department, and Kim Je-hyun, director general of the Human Resources and Management Department, were appointed as new assistant governors of the Bank of Korea. It is Governor Shin Hyun-song's first senior-level personnel move since taking office.
The assistant governor, a role equivalent to Deputy Minister, assists the governor and oversees overall operations including currency policy and organizational management. The Bank of Korea (BOK) has five assistant governors, and two of the posts had been vacant since early this year. The term is three years.
On the day, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said Governor Shin Hyun-song appointed Lee Ji-ho, director general of the Research Department, as assistant governor in charge of research and statistics, and Kim Je-hyun, director general of the Human Resources and Management Department, as assistant governor in charge of management.
Assistant governors are appointed by the BOK governor. As the terms of assistant governors ended around the departure of former Governor Rhee Chang-yong, the vacancies appear not to have been filled in time.
New assistant governor Lee Ji-ho joined in 1997 and worked in the Financial Markets Department, the Monetary Policy Department, and the Research Department. Lee also served on secondment as director general for people's livelihood economy policy at the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The Bank of Korea (BOK) said, "After taking office as head of the Research Department, Lee greatly contributed to advancing economic outlooks and improving the transparency and effectiveness of currency policy by breaking down and publishing quarterly projections of growth and price trends."
New assistant governor Kim Je-hyun joined the Bank of Korea (BOK) in 1996 and worked in the Financial Markets Department, the Monetary Policy Department, the Human Resources and Management Department, and the Communications Department. Kim also served as policy aide and chief of staff. The Bank of Korea (BOK) said, "Kim is regarded as having a high level of understanding of the organization overall and a reasonable and flexible character."