Yoon Jong-kyu, KB Financial Group Chairman, 'Voluntary Retirement'... "Time to Pass the Baton for Change" (Comprehensive)

Yoon Jong-kyu, Chairman of KB Financial Group

Yoon Jong-kyu, Chairman of KB Financial Group, will step down at the end of his current term.

According to KB Financial on the 6th, Chairman Yoon informed the Chairman Candidate Recommendation Committee (Chairman Nomination Committee) that he would not seek reappointment. He told the committee members, "It is time to pass the baton of KB Financial for the group's new future and change," adding, "I hope a capable person who can lead sustainable growth and help KB Financial leap beyond South Korea to become a leading financial group representing Asia will be appointed as the next chairman."

Chairman Yoon took office on November 21, 2014, and successfully renewed his term twice in 2017 and 2020. He is currently serving his third term, which is set to expire on November 20.

Since his inauguration, Yoon concurrently held the positions of chairman and bank president for three years, managing to resolve the turmoil caused by internal conflicts during the KB incident. He laid the foundation for the current KB Financial through strengthening core business competitiveness and actively pursuing mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Starting with LIG Insurance (now KB Insurance) in 2015, he led M&As of Hyundai Securities (now KB Securities) in 2016 and Prudential Life Insurance (now KB Life Insurance) in 2020, thereby reinforcing non-banking businesses. This year alone, KB Financial achieved record-breaking performance approaching 3 trillion won in the first half, solidifying its position as a leading financial group in South Korea.

Kim Kyung-ho, Chairman of the Nomination Committee, said, "Since Chairman Yoon has achieved much of the vision he dreamed of for KB at the time of his inauguration, it is now time to show the market that the stable governance structure and effective management succession system built around the board of directors are working well. He has expressed this intention to the board since the beginning of the year." He added, "His transparent, objective, and respectful attitude toward the board has been an opportunity to establish the framework of KB's governance and will remain a good tradition for future CEOs."

Following Chairman Yoon's announcement of his intention to step down, the shortlist will be decided from the longlist excluding him. On the 8th, the Nomination Committee will finalize the first shortlist of six candidates from the longlist, and on the 29th, after conducting first-round interviews and evaluations with the six candidates, the shortlist will be narrowed down to three.

On September 8, an in-depth evaluation through second-round interviews will be conducted with the three candidates, and one final candidate will be selected through voting. After the final candidate passes the qualification verification as stipulated by relevant laws, the recommendation process by the Nomination Committee and the board of directors will follow, and the candidate will be appointed as chairman at the general meeting of shareholders scheduled for November 20.

In the financial sector, it is widely expected that the final candidate will come from among Vice Chairmen Heo In, Lee Dong-chul, and Yang Jong-hee, who have been nurtured through the succession program.

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