Han Yong-gu Appointed as New Shinhan Bank President... 'Generational Change' Begins in Earnest (Comprehensive)

Moon Dong-kwon, First Internal Executive, Appointed as Shinhan Card President

Han Yong-gu, Executive Vice President recommended as the next CEO of Shinhan Bank.

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] Han Yong-gu (56), head of the Sales Group (Executive Vice President), a sales expert, has been nominated as the new CEO of Shinhan Bank to work alongside Jin Ok-dong, the next designated Chairman and CEO of Shinhan Financial Group. This marks the beginning of a generational shift at Shinhan Financial.

On the 20th, Shinhan Financial Group held an extraordinary board meeting and a subsidiary management committee meeting at its headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, announcing the appointment of CEOs for 10 subsidiaries, including Shinhan Bank, and personnel changes in the holding company’s management.

Han, the EVP, was nominated as the CEO of Shinhan Bank, the group's main subsidiary. Born in 1966, Han graduated from Cheongju High School and Sungkyunkwan University, joined the bank in 1991, and has held positions such as Head of the Retirement Pension Business Division, Head of the ONE Shinhan Strategy Team at the holding company, Head of Management Support Group at Shinhan Investment Corp. (Vice President), and Head of the Sales Group at Shinhan Bank (EVP).

Han, as the head of the Sales Group overseeing Shinhan Bank’s sales channels, has a broad understanding of recent banking issues including channel strategy, loan and deposit products, and soundness management. During his tenure as a branch manager, he was praised for outstanding performance through proactive relationship building and strong drive. The company explained that based on his management experience across various financial sectors, he is considered well-suited to respond to volatile crisis situations.

Industry insiders noted that just as Jin’s nomination as the next Chairman and CEO broke the initial expectation of Cho Yong-byeong’s third term, Han’s selection was also unexpected. A Shinhan Financial official said, "Han, born in 1966, is among the youngest candidates initially considered. This reflects the 'generational change' trend applied in the CEO and Chairman selection process."

For the successor to Lim Young-jin, the longest-serving CEO in the industry and President of Shinhan Card, Moon Dong-kwon, Head of the Management Planning Group (Vice President), was nominated. Born in 1968, Moon graduated from Yonsei University and started his career at LG Installment Finance. He later moved to the former LG Card and, after the launch of Shinhan Card, served as Head of Management Team, Head of Strategic Planning Team, Head of Planning Division, and Managing Director of the Management Planning Group. Upon final appointment, Moon is expected to become the first internally promoted CEO since the 2009 merger that formed Shinhan Card.

Moon is credited with supporting Shinhan Card’s top industry performance through stable management as Head of the Management Planning Group. Shinhan Financial stated, "He set the task of advancing to a Life & Finance platform, actively supported open banking and MyData utilization to enhance and integrate customer experience, and was recognized for bold innovation and drive during the restructuring of Shinhan Card’s business."

At Shinhan Investment Corp., CEO Lee Young-chang stepped down upon term expiration, and Kim Sang-tae, formerly of Mirae Asset Daewoo, was appointed as sole CEO overseeing the entire company. Lee Young-jong, Head of the Retirement Pension Business Group (Vice President), was newly nominated as CEO of Shinhan Life. For Shinhan Capital and Shinhan Savings Bank, CEOs Jung Woon-jin and Lee Hee-soo were recommended for reappointment based on their performance over the past two years. Given the significant asset growth of both companies in recent years, there was consensus that stable risk management centered on the incumbent CEOs is necessary amid the current volatile market environment.

Additionally, Kim Hee-song, CEO of Shinhan Asset Management’s alternative assets division, was recommended for reappointment, maintaining a dual CEO system with Jo Jae-min, CEO of the traditional asset division. Lee Seung-soo, Vice President with diverse experience in real estate finance, was nominated as the new CEO candidate for Shinhan Asset Trust, which became a 100% subsidiary in June. Furthermore, Lee Dong-hyun and Bae Jin-soo were reappointed as CEOs of Shinhan Venture Investment and Shinhan AI, respectively.

Shinhan Financial explained the scale of this personnel change: "Last year, some CEOs were replaced mainly in small and medium-sized subsidiaries such as Jeju Bank, Shinhan ITAS, and Shinhan DS. This year, with changes in CEOs of core subsidiaries including the bank, card, securities, and life insurance, the overall group change appears larger. However, this is a natural generational shift following the nomination of the new chairman candidate."

They added, "The CEO candidates recommended for major subsidiaries have been nurtured as management leaders within the group over several years, demonstrating that the leadership development system emphasized by Chairman Cho throughout his term is operating stably. By selecting young and capable talents who are well-versed in the industry and can respond swiftly to trend changes, we have established a growth foundation that enables efficient and stable management and seizes new opportunities amid crises."

Shinhan Financial Group also implemented organizational restructuring and management personnel changes. The group dismantled the Management Division, which had been responsible for group financial performance management, and decided to separate the concurrent roles of heads of Asset Management (WM), Retirement Pension, and GMS business groups, which had been held concurrently at the holding company and subsidiaries. Additionally, the Group One Shinhan Division and Group New Business Division were newly established. The much-anticipated Vice Chairman position was not created.

Shinhan Financial stated, "In areas where a collaborative culture is established within the group, we plan to reduce and streamline the holding company’s management functions, while strengthening the holding company’s role in core business areas and new growth engine discovery to upgrade group-level collaboration strategies, pursuing changes from a 'separate yet together' perspective."

Among the executives, Ko Seok-hyun, Managing Director and Head of Group Strategy and Sustainable Management Division, is set to be promoted to Vice President, and Jang Dong-gi, Vice President and Head of the GMS Business Group overseeing the group’s proprietary asset management, will move to the newly established Head of New Business Division. Most other holding company executives were reappointed, with some additional task assignments expected following the organizational restructuring.

A Shinhan Financial Group board member said, "This personnel decision was made after thorough consultation between Chairman Cho and the designated Jin. We expect the newly appointed CEOs and executives, as group management leaders, to leverage their accumulated experience and insights to respond stably to market uncertainties and demonstrate strong drive and execution to elevate the group to the next level."

Meanwhile, the terms of the recommended executives will begin on January 1 next year. The subsidiary CEO candidates nominated by the subsidiary management committee will undergo qualification and suitability verification by each subsidiary’s executive nomination committee before final appointment at each company’s shareholders’ meeting and board of directors.

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