KB Geumyung, Chairman Final Candidate Confirmed Today... Yoon Jong-kyu Likely for 3rd Term

Scheduled to be appointed as chairman at the November extraordinary shareholders' meeting

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Sun-mi] KB Financial Group will finalize one candidate for the next chairman on the 16th.

The KB Financial Chairman Candidate Recommendation Committee (hereinafter referred to as the Recommendation Committee) plans to conduct in-depth interviews with the final shortlist of four candidates on the same day and confirm one final candidate late in the afternoon. To be selected as the final candidate, a candidate must receive at least two-thirds of the votes from the Recommendation Committee members (5 out of 7 members).

The final candidate who passes the qualification verification will go through the Recommendation Committee and the Board of Directors' recommendation process scheduled for September 25, and will be appointed as chairman at the extraordinary shareholders' meeting in November.

The KB Financial Recommendation Committee finalized a shortlist of four candidates on the 28th of last month, including the current chairman Yoon Jong-kyu, KB Kookmin Bank President Heo In, KB Kookmin Card President Lee Dong-cheol, and former Hana Financial Group Vice Chairman Kim Byung-ho. Among those on the shortlist, Kim, the former vice chairman, is the only external candidate, while the others are from within KB Financial.

In particular, it is known that Chairman Yoon and President Heo received the highest scores during the shortlist selection process, signaling a green light for Chairman Yoon's possibility of a third term.

Chairman Yoon has held the position of KB Financial chairman since November 2014. This is his third-term challenge. Under Chairman Yoon's leadership, KB Financial has solidified its position as the leading financial holding company in the industry and has achieved notable success in expanding its size and strengthening its fundamentals through major mergers and acquisitions (M&A).

Within the industry, the possibility of Chairman Yoon's third term is already being given significant weight. There have been several cases of financial holding company chairmen serving three consecutive terms, such as former Shinhan Financial Chairman Ra Eung-chan, former Hana Financial Chairman Kim Seung-yu, and current Hana Financial Chairman Kim Jung-tae. Given KB Financial's rapid growth, there is an assessment that there is no reason why Chairman Yoon cannot serve a third term.