Will Another Wave of Rejections Hit in May? FSS on High Alert Ahead of Ethics Committee Employment Review

Red Light for FSS Retirees Seeking Reemployment
No Successful Candidates in April Review; About Five Team Leaders and Directors Awaiting This Month's Screening
Stricter Ethics Committee Reviews Fuel Internal Anxiety

Internal tensions are rising within the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) over the reemployment of its retirees. Last month, none of the former FSS officials passed the government’s Public Official Ethics Committee (Ethics Committee) employment screening, and with several more retirees set to undergo review this month, the entire organization is closely monitoring the results.

Lee Chan-jin, Financial Supervisory Service Governor, attended a business agreement ceremony held at the Seoul Main Customs Office in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, in March to eradicate cross-border crime proceeds transfer and money laundering, delivering a keynote speech. 2026.03.17 Photo by Dongju Yoon

According to financial authorities on May 6, around five FSS retirees are expected to be subject to this month’s Ethics Committee employment screening for former public officials. This group reportedly includes team leaders and director-level executives who were recently in charge of major areas such as bank audits and insurance product oversight. They had already submitted their resignations last month in order to move to financial companies such as law firms and asset management firms.

An FSS official stated, “With no one passing last month’s employment review, we are more alert than ever about this month’s outcome. Not only those who have already resigned, but also current employees are regarding this as an issue directly linked to their future careers, so internal unease is considerable.”

Previously, the Ethics Committee either rejected or restricted the employment of three out of five FSS retirees who underwent screening last month. In particular, the rejection of former FSS Deputy Governor Kim Mi-young—who had been nominated for the position of President at Korea Credit Information Services, marking the first time an FSS alumnus was considered for the role—sent shockwaves throughout the organization. The failed employment screening of two relatively junior employees (grades 3 and 4), which derailed their planned move to Coupang, also had a significant impact. Notably, the rejection of a grade 4 senior employee with roughly 15 years of service was highly unusual. Within the FSS, there is widespread speculation about the reasons, as many internally believe that, contrary to the Ethics Committee’s explanation, the planned role at Coupang had no connection to the employee’s previous duties. The remaining two individuals reportedly received deferred decisions.

The complete lack of successful FSS cases in last month’s employment screening has prompted analysis that the standards for screening former public officials for conflicts of interest and reemployment have been tightened. In fact, last month, the Ethics Committee imposed employment restrictions (12 cases) or outright rejections (14 cases) in a total of 26 out of 77 reviews. Former senior officials from the Board of Audit and Inspection and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy also faced obstacles to employment at KB Kookmin Card, Dunamu, and the Korea Federation of Textile Industries, indicating that the bar has been raised not only for FSS retirees. Some interpret this as part of a broader trend under the current administration to exclude former bureaucrats from public institution leadership roles.

Although FSS employees are not civil servants, as a quasi-public institution they are subject to regulations similar to those for public officials in areas such as asset disclosure and reemployment. Especially given the FSS’s considerable authority over financial institutions through its supervisory and inspection powers—effectively making it a “powerful agency”—it is believed that stricter standards may be applied in employment reviews.

Both inside and outside the FSS, there is a sense that the results of the May employment screening will serve as a watershed moment for the future reemployment prospects of staff. Some observers carefully speculate that the failed move of relatively junior grade 3 and 4 employees to Coupang may be fallout from last year’s data breach and the company’s increased public affairs efforts in the United States, which has put Coupang—a US-listed company—at the center of US-Korea trade tensions, possibly leading the government to impose what is being called a “displeasure penalty.” Nevertheless, within the FSS, anxiety is spreading rapidly amid concerns that reemployment channels may become more limited.

One director-level FSS executive commented, “If the same decisions are repeated this month as in April, it will become increasingly difficult to expect any reemployment. With my own retirement just a few years away, I can’t help but feel personally affected. We are watching the results of the May Ethics Committee employment screening with great tension.”

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