"Regulation Relief and Communication Enhancement"…Three Candidates for Fintech Association President Present Their Unique Platforms

CEO Jeong In-Young "Strengthening Overseas Competitiveness of Domestic Companies"
CEO Lee Hye-Min "Focusing on Skinship through Communication Council"
Director Lee Geun-Joo "Expanding Industry Scope through Startup Induction"

From the left, Jung In-young, CEO of December & Company Asset Management; Lee Hye-min, CEO of Finda; Lee Geun-joo, President of Korea Simple Payment Promotion Agency (in order of symbols)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] Three candidates have been confirmed and announced for the 4th president of the Korea Fintech Industry Association: Jeong In-young, CEO of December & Company Asset Management; Lee Hye-min, CEO of Finda; and Lee Geun-joo, Director of the Korea Easy Payment Promotion Agency (in order of candidate number). They emphasized their intention to resolve recent regulatory issues and strengthen communication with financial authorities and existing financial institutions.

According to the financial sector on the 20th, the Fintech Industry Association officially began election campaigning after confirming and announcing the three candidates who declared their intention to run for the next president election the day before. Previously, the association’s secretariat accepted applications for next executive candidates until the 7th, and after a qualification review by the election management committee and the board of directors, the candidates were finalized. Accordingly, official election campaigning started from this day.

This election is expected to prioritize solving challenges faced by the fintech industry and presenting a vision. In particular, various issues such as the passage of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act amendment, activation of the Personal Credit Information Management Business (MyData), network separation issues, and deregulation of the fintech industry are piling up. Moreover, since the fintech industry is still in its early stages, raising the industry's voice is also an important task.

Each candidate is focusing on presenting their vision and direction. CEO Jeong stated that he plans to increase opportunities for communication among member companies and actively propose solutions to regulatory gaps to the National Assembly and government. He also pledged to strengthen the global competitiveness of domestic fintech companies.

CEO Jeong said, "I believe the core of fintech lies in the ‘development of finance through vibrant startups.’ As the first task, I plan to reorganize the fintech industry's big agenda around ‘vibrant startups’ and study overseas cases to identify regulatory gaps between domestic and international fintech." December & Company Asset Management holds various licenses including investment advisory, discretionary investment management, electronic financial business, foreign exchange handling, and MyData business. CEO Jeong’s high understanding of technology is expected to enable him to voice professional technical issues in the fintech industry, such as network separation regulations.

CEO Lee Hye-min pledged to focus more on communication with financial authorities by gathering the voices of the fintech industry. In particular, she plans to form a consultative body to hold regular meetings with the government and existing financial institutions.

CEO Lee said, "Just as Finda’s business model is a platform, I decided to run because I believe I can serve as a communication bridge between financial institutions, fintech companies, and government agencies. If elected, I will form a purpose-driven communication consultative body among member companies of various business types to maintain close skinship and create a communication platform with relevant government authorities and financial institutions." Finda provides loan comparison services and MyData services, which are the most common services in the fintech industry, so it is expected to broadly represent industry opinions.

Director Lee Geun-joo stated that he will prioritize resolving long-standing issues in the fintech industry such as the amendment of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act and network separation regulations. Additionally, he plans to revitalize the fintech ecosystem itself through communication among member companies, expanding membership, and promoting startups.

Director Lee said, "Due to recent regulatory issues and other factors, the barriers to startups have become higher than before. I will lower these barriers to promote startup activation and support various initiatives for startups to become self-reliant, developing the fintech industry into a sector leading national future innovation." Director Lee is the only candidate with a background in the financial industry, having worked at IBK Industrial Bank. Because of this, his communication skills with existing financial institutions are highly anticipated. He also served as the preparatory director and secretary-general during the establishment of the Fintech Association, giving him a deep understanding of the industry and excellent networking with existing member companies.

The next president is scheduled to be elected through a vote of member companies at the regular general meeting on February 17.