90% Change in Financial Supervisory Service Department Heads... Large-Scale Personnel and Organizational Restructuring

Organizational "Major Overhaul" to Strengthen Supervision System and Adapt to the Digital Finance Era

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[Asia Economy Reporter Sunmi Park] The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) has carried out a large-scale personnel reshuffle and organizational restructuring, changing 90% of department heads.

On the 30th, the FSS conducted a major reshuffle of department heads, replacing 70 out of 79 (89%) department heads. This personnel change focused on maximizing organizational capabilities through gradual generational change, balanced personnel appointments, and placing the right people in the right positions based on ability.

Since the establishment of the FSS in 1999, Kim Beom-su, the first batch of FSS public recruitment, was appointed as General Affairs Director (currently Deputy Director of the Financial Product Analysis Bureau), and Seo Jae-wan, Legal Affairs Director (currently Deputy Director of the Asset Management Supervision Bureau), were appointed as key department heads. Female department heads with long-standing expertise in IT and insurance fields, such as Jang Sung-ok, IT Inspection Director (currently Director of the Informatization Strategy Bureau), and Lee Sang-ah, Insurance Risk System Office Director (currently Director of the Financial Product Review Bureau), were also appointed to major supervisory and inspection departments.

To strengthen supervisory functions and respond to the digital financial environment, organizational restructuring was also implemented. First, the supervisory general organization was reorganized to detect potential risks early and respond proactively. The existing Supervisory General Bureau, Macroprudential Supervision Bureau, and International Bureau were changed to the Supervisory General Bureau, Supervisory Coordination Bureau, and Global Finance Bureau.

The Supervisory General Bureau will focus on overall supervisory functions such as overseeing major issues like household debt and ESG, planning, and managing external meetings, serving as a control tower to respond quickly and systematically to key issues. Additionally, the Supervisory Coordination Bureau will be established to handle mid- to long-term supervisory strategies, including regulations and systems across all sectors, macroprudential supervision, and financial investigation research. The International Bureau will be reorganized into the Global Finance Bureau to closely monitor domestic and international financial market risk factors and conduct in-depth analysis of trends among overseas supervisory authorities and international organizations.

Expansion of the digital finance organization is another key feature of this restructuring. In line with structural changes in the financial industry such as the expansion of financial platforms and the full-scale development of the data industry, digital finance-related organizations and personnel have been significantly expanded. To activate digital financial innovation and establish a supervisory system for innovative finance, the Digital Finance Supervision Bureau was reorganized into the Digital Finance Innovation Bureau. Furthermore, a Financial Data Office was newly established to promote the development of the data industry using new technologies such as big data and AI, and to encourage fair and transparent use of financial data.

In addition, the Digital Finance Inspection Bureau was reorganized into the IT Inspection Bureau, with the establishment of an Electronic Finance Inspection Team. An Internet-Only Bank Inspection Team was also added to the General Bank Inspection Bureau to actively protect consumer rights in the digital finance era.

The FSS also aims to respond to new supervisory demands and improve organizational efficiency. To systematically address new risk factors, new supervisory and inspection teams will be established, and organizational efficiency will be pursued through department and team integration and redeployment.

An FSS official explained, "The organizational restructuring was carried out to strengthen a preventive financial supervisory system that can proactively detect and respond to risks following the COVID-19 pandemic, while activating digital financial innovation and expanding related organizations to minimize consumer damage associated with it. The best-qualified individuals who can perform excellently in their respective roles were appointed across major sectors and departments such as banking, securities, and insurance."

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