BNK Financial Group, Board Meeting Tomorrow... Discussions on Acting CEO and Next Chairman Appointment Begin

Interest in Whether External or Internal

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] BNK Financial Group, which is facing a leadership vacuum following the resignation of former Chairman Kim Ji-wan, will hold a board meeting on the 14th to formally discuss the appointment of an acting chairman and the selection of the next chairman. Industry insiders are closely watching whether an external candidate will be reappointed or an internal candidate will successfully succeed to the position.

According to financial circles on the 13th, BNK Financial Group will convene a board meeting on the 14th to discuss the schedule and evaluation criteria of the Executive Recommendation Committee. This marks the beginning of serious discussions not only for selecting an acting chairman to fill the vacancy left by former Chairman Kim’s resignation but also for appointing the next chairman.

Former Chairman Kim, who was embroiled in allegations of preferential treatment of his children during last month’s National Assembly audit, resigned on the 7th, about five months before the end of his term. He cited moral responsibility for the recent allegations, deteriorating health, and organizational stability as reasons for his resignation.

According to BNK Financial Group’s current internal governance regulations, in the event of the chairman’s absence, an inside director acts as the chairman by resolution of the board. If there is no inside director, the board appoints an acting chairman from among the group’s business execution officers or subsidiary CEOs. Currently, there are nine business execution officers within the holding company, including Vice President Sung Kyung-sik, and nine subsidiary CEOs, such as An Gam-chan, President of BNK Busan Bank, and Lee Doo-ho, CEO of BNK Capital.

Industry attention is focused on the next chairman position. BNK Financial Group is the only domestic financial holding company that, in 2018, amended its CEO candidate recommendation and succession regulations to appoint the chairman from internal succession candidates, including inside directors, business execution officers (presidents or higher), and subsidiary representatives. However, during the recent National Assembly audit, the ruling party criticized BNK’s CEO appointment process as "closed." In response, the BNK board held a meeting on the 4th and added a clause allowing external candidates to be nominated as chairman candidates upon recommendation by an external professional institution. This opened the door for external candidates to be appointed as chairman.

Among internal candidates, President An and CEO Lee are considered frontrunners. Both CEOs are also listed as non-executive directors of the holding company. However, with the Financial Supervisory Service currently conducting on-site inspections related to the preferential treatment allegations involving former Chairman Kim’s children, and subsidiaries BNK Capital and BNK Asset Management under investigation, there is analysis that the candidate pool may change depending on the results.

As for external candidates, names such as Park Young-bin, Chairman of the Construction Mutual Aid Association (former President of Gyeongnam Bank), Son Gyo-duk, former President of Gyeongnam Bank, Bin Dae-in, former President of Busan Bank, and Ahn Hyo-jun, former CEO of BNK Investment & Securities, are being floated. Former Chairman Lee Pal-sung of Woori Financial Group is also mentioned. Industry insiders speculate that to stabilize the organization unsettled by Chairman Kim’s resignation, other reputable figures from the financial sector may be added to the candidate pool.

A BNK Financial Group official stated, "Following the submission of the chairman’s resignation today, we will promptly hold a board meeting to prevent any management vacuum in the group and swiftly proceed with the next chairman selection process through the Executive Recommendation Committee. We will focus all our capabilities on fulfilling the group’s fundamental role of revitalizing the regional economy so that customers do not experience any inconvenience due to internal group issues."

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