Chairman Lee Okwon of the Financial Services Commission: "Pursuing a Major Shift to Productive Finance"

Lee Okwon Inaugurated as Chairman of the Financial Services Commission on September 15
Pursuing Three Major Financial Transformations:
"Productive Finance, Consumer-Centered Finance, and Trusted Finance"

Lee Okwon, the nominee for the Financial Services Commission chairman, expresses his feelings about the appointment as he arrives at the confirmation hearing preparation office set up at the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation in Jongno-gu, Seoul on August 14, 2025. Photo by Kang Jinhyung

Lee Okwon, the new chairman of the Financial Services Commission, announced that he will pursue three major financial transformations: productive finance, consumer-centered finance, and trusted finance.

On the afternoon of September 15, at the Government Complex Seoul in Jongno-gu, Seoul, Chairman Lee held his inauguration ceremony and officially presented the three directions for a "major financial transformation" to initiate a leading role for finance in opening the future.

He first emphasized, "We need a shift to productive finance that supports sustainable growth," adding, "We will change our financial sector so that it can more actively take on risks and channel funds into productive areas that will drive the future of Korea."

To achieve this, he explained, "Based on the Advanced Strategic Industry Fund, we will establish a 150 trillion won National Growth Fund together with the financial sector to provide unprecedented, large-scale, customized funding to advanced strategic industries and their related ecosystems, where global competition is fierce."

He also aims to promote the revitalization of a sound capital market. Chairman Lee stated, "We will expand venture capital by fostering mega-investment banks and restructure the stock market by strengthening the role of the KOSDAQ market," and added, "By ensuring the successful implementation of the revised Commercial Act and improving systems to protect minority shareholders, we will spread a corporate management culture focused on shareholder value."

Secondly, he promised a shift to "consumer-centered finance" that works together with the public. Chairman Lee emphasized, "We will create a virtuous cycle in which vulnerable groups, such as low-income individuals and small business owners, can recover through finance, return to stable lives, and use financial services again," and added, "By establishing the Financial Stability Fund for Low-Income Households and other measures, we will ensure diverse funding and ease financial burdens."

He continued, "We will ensure that internal controls at financial companies function effectively and will thoroughly review the sales process of financial products from the consumer's perspective to establish more substantial, preventive protection measures."

Lastly, he called for a transition to "trusted finance" based on stability and order. He stated, "We will thoroughly examine risk factors such as household debt, real estate project financing, and restructuring of vulnerable key industries to firmly secure the stability of the financial market," and added, "We will respond strictly and without hesitation to illegal and unfair practices that undermine market order."

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