Hana Financial Group, Chairman Kim Jung-tae's 5 Billion KRW Special Service Bonus Approved at General Meeting

Passed Agenda at Regular General Meeting
Next President Appointment Also Approved... 'Ham Young-jooho' Sets Sail

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] At the Hana Financial Group shareholders' meeting held on the 25th, all agenda items were approved. This included the appointment of Vice Chairman Ham Young-joo as the next chairman, as well as the approval of a special merit payment of 5 billion KRW to the current chairman Kim Jung-tae, which the National Pension Service had opposed.

According to the financial industry, Hana Financial Group held its 17th regular shareholders' meeting on the morning of the day at its Myeongdong headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, passing all six agenda items. Notably, the agenda to pay the special merit payment to Chairman Kim, which the largest shareholder (9.19%), the National Pension Service, had opposed the day before, was also approved.

Previously, Hana Financial announced that it would pay Chairman Kim a special merit payment of 5 billion KRW. It was explained that this was based on the internal executive retirement pay regulations of Hana Financial established in 2013 (Article 5: Special Provisions on Retirement Pay). This special merit payment is separate from last year's director remuneration limit (2.4 billion KRW) and the basic retirement pay.

In response, the National Pension Fund Stewardship Committee held its 6th meeting the day before and expressed opposition. They judged that the 5 billion KRW special merit payment was excessive. Some proxy advisory firms also reportedly opposed the payment, citing unclear criteria for its calculation. They also opposed the agenda to approve the director remuneration limit. All other agenda items were approved.

Previously, in 2012, Hana Financial faced controversy after discussing special merit payments of 4.5 billion KRW and 1.5 billion KRW to former Chairman Kim Seung-yu and former President Kim Jong-yeol, respectively. As a result, the special merit payment regulations were formalized at the 2013 shareholders' meeting.

Meanwhile, despite various legal risks, the 'Ham Young-joo administration' of Hana Financial Group officially set sail on this day. The agenda to appoint Vice Chairman Ham as an inside director was approved at the shareholders' meeting, making him the next chairman. Although Vice Chairman Ham lost the first trial in a lawsuit demanding the cancellation of the Financial Supervisory Service's heavy sanctions related to the incomplete sale of overseas interest rate-linked derivative-linked funds (DLF), increasing legal risks, he overcame this and succeeded in becoming chairman.

His consistent shareholder-friendly dividend policy also seems to have won the hearts of shareholders. Although ISS, the world's largest proxy advisory firm, recommended opposition, the votes of foreign shareholders holding more than 67% of shares did not significantly shift. The National Pension Service also expressed support. Shareholders appeared to be concerned about management gaps and confusion that could arise again during the process of selecting the next leader.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.