LH Appoints Compliance Officer to "Strengthen Self-Cleansing Efforts to Eradicate Speculation"

Final Selection and Appointment of Audit Experts Through External Recruitment
Investigation of Illegal and Unfair Real Estate Transactions, Support for Anti-Corruption Education, etc.
Continued Anti-Corruption Efforts Including Internal Real Estate Registration and Personnel Actions Against Suspected Speculative Activities

Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) announced on the 15th that it has appointed a new Compliance Officer and will intensify its self-regulatory efforts to eradicate real estate speculation among its executives and employees.

The newly appointed Compliance Officer, Kim Kyung-dong, who assumed office on this day, began his public service career in Seoul, then worked at the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the Prime Minister’s Office, and since 2013 has been performing audit duties at the Board of Audit and Inspection, accumulating extensive experience in public ethics and auditing.

During his two-year term, Officer Kim will carry out various activities to eliminate speculation at LH from an objective perspective. Specifically, he will be responsible for △investigating and publicly disclosing illegal or improper transactions using development project information by executives and employees △investigating violations of restrictions on acquiring new real estate for purposes other than actual use △supporting the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s regular investigations into real estate transactions by executives and employees △supporting anti-corruption education, among other duties.

Since March, LH has established the Compliance and Ethics Monitoring Team, an internal dedicated monitoring organization, to intensify efforts to fundamentally block speculation by executives and employees. It has conducted a full survey on whether executives and employees hold land within project districts and created an internal ‘Real Estate Registration and Reporting System’ to complete the registration of real estate owned by executives and grade 1 and 2 employees.

Additionally, LH has introduced internal regulations to prohibit acquiring real estate using insider information obtained directly or indirectly through official duties, restricting new acquisitions of real estate for purposes other than actual use. For land held by executives and employees within project districts, they are excluded from preferential compensation such as negotiated transfer land provided by project implementers.

Along with institutional improvements, LH is also strengthening personnel regulations including disciplinary measures.

It restricts promotions to senior positions for those involved in real estate speculation or holding excessive properties, and enforces strict penalties such as immediate dismissal upon prosecution by the prosecution for violations of real estate acquisition restrictions. In particular, four individuals who were arrested and prosecuted on suspicion of real estate speculation have been dismissed or forcibly removed, demonstrating strong personnel actions against speculation using undisclosed information. Furthermore, measures to eradicate preferential treatment for former officials are underway, including expanding employment restrictions at related public institutions from former executive directors to grade 2 or higher employees.