Kim Taehyun Appointed as New President of Forecasting Service: "Failure to Manage Household Debt Will Boomerang as Financial Institution Insolvency"

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-seop] Kim Tae-hyun, former Secretary General of the Financial Services Commission, was inaugurated as the new president of the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation on the 1st.

President Kim was born in 1966 in Jinju, Gyeongnam, and passed the 35th Administrative Examination, beginning his bureaucratic career as an officer at the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs. Since then, he has held key positions including Director of Financial Policy at the Financial Services Commission, Senior Administrative Officer at the Office of the Senior Secretary for Economic Affairs in the Presidential Secretariat, and Standing Commissioner of the Financial Services Commission.

President Kim has been widely recognized for contributing to the stabilization of financial markets during economic crises such as the foreign exchange crisis, the global financial crisis, and COVID-19. He has also focused on policies protecting financial consumers, including investor protection.

In his inauguration speech held that day, President Kim stated, “COVID-19 is making normal economic activities and daily life difficult,” and warned, “If household debt is not managed thoroughly, it can become a boomerang that causes both financial companies and households to become insolvent.”

He then presented “enhancing the status as a crisis response organization” as the direction the corporation should take. This reflects the intention to make efforts to prevent financial company insolvency before funds are used. President Kim explained, “We will deeply understand and forecast the potential risks of financial companies and the financial industry through information sharing among financial safety net organizations,” and added, “We will do our best to ensure that the recently implemented Resolution and Recovery Plan (RRP) system, enacted in June, operates effectively as a means of insolvency prevention and timely response.”

He continued, “The deposit insurance system and fund structure need to be overhauled,” and emphasized, “It is necessary to prepare in advance for the termination of the special account for savings banks and the Deposit Insurance Bond Redemption Fund.” Regarding the sale of shares held by the corporation, including those of Woori Financial Group, he pledged, “We will make every effort,” and stressed, “We will gradually proceed with the conclusion of the bankruptcy estate to recover public funds to the maximum extent.”

Regarding financial consumer protection, he said, “There are differences in needs among financial consumers, and the risk patterns vary by sector,” and added, “We will refine the deposit insurance system more precisely by reflecting these characteristics.”