The Right Candidate for Organizational Reform... Four-Way Race for Next Woori Financial Chairman

Lee Won-deok, President of Woori Bank; Shin Hyun-seok, Head of Woori America Corporation; Lee Dong-yeon, Former President of Woori FIS; Lim Jong-ryong, Former Chairman of the Financial Services Commission

[Asia Economy Reporter Bu Aeri] The next chairman candidates for Woori Financial Group have been narrowed down to four. Currently, the competition appears to be between Lee Won-duk, the current president of Woori Bank, and Lim Jong-ryong, the former chairman of the Financial Services Commission, but the key is to be recognized as the right person to reform Woori Financial's organization. Woori Financial has faced continuous incidents, from employee embezzlement involving about 70 billion won last year to recent workplace harassment by a head of department, making internal control the biggest challenge for future leadership.

The Woori Financial Executive Candidate Recommendation Committee selected four candidates for the next chairman shortlist (second-round candidates) on the 27th. Along with President Lee and former Chairman Lim, the list includes Shin Hyun-seok, head of Woori America Corporation, and Lee Dong-yeon, former president of Woori FIS. The committee will finalize the candidate after in-depth interviews on the 1st and additional interviews on the 3rd.

Since both internal and external candidates are included in this shortlist, it is difficult to make premature predictions about the final outcome. First, if an internal candidate becomes the next chairman, there is the advantage of stabilizing the organization while managing the current unsettled atmosphere.

In particular, President Lee, the current bank president, is from Hanil Bank, like the current chairman Sohn Tae-seung, and they have worked in the same department. Because he can naturally maintain the current system established by Chairman Sohn, it could help stabilize the organization. He is regarded as a strategist who has served as head of Woori Bank’s Future Strategy Division, executive vice president of the Management Planning Group, and vice president and senior vice president of Woori Financial Group’s Strategy Division. A senior financial official said, "Since President Lee is close to Chairman Sohn, it seems he has rapidly risen in prominence." Given that the recommendation committee is composed of outside directors, there is also a possibility that outside directors appointed during Chairman Sohn’s tenure may be favorable.

As for Shin, the head of the corporation, he is from the Commercial Bank and has served as senior manager of Woori Bank’s U.S. regional headquarters, LA branch manager, head of the Management Planning Division, and head of the Management Planning Group. It is known that he received high scores from the recommendation committee during the longlist evaluation. According to internal sources, Shin is also famous as a strategist.

Lee Dong-yeon, former president of Woori FIS, is classified as an external candidate since he is a former executive, but he is practically close to an internal candidate. Lee, who joined Hanil Bank, served as managing director of Woori Bank’s Pension Trust Business Unit, head of the SME Group, and until 2020, was CEO of Woori FIS and Chief Information Officer of Woori Bank, making him recognized as a digital expert. A source familiar with Woori Financial said, "He fits the current trend of digital innovation and has held key positions while at the bank," adding, "His leadership and communication skills are also excellent."

Given the ongoing internal factional conflicts within Woori Bank, there is also a view that a candidate with a firm grip is suitable for organizational reform. From the 70 billion won employee embezzlement case to this year’s workplace harassment issue, a figure capable of innovating the existing organizational culture is needed. A senior financial regulator said, "With reform of Woori Financial’s organizational culture emerging as a key issue, it seems necessary for a candidate with a firm grip to take control of the organization."

Former Chairman Lim graduated from Yonsei University with a degree in economics and entered public service through the 24th administrative examination. He is a career bureaucrat who served as head of the Financial Policy Division at the former Ministry of Finance and Economy, director of the Economic Policy Bureau, first vice minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, and chief of the Prime Minister’s Office. From 2013 to early 2015, he served as chairman of NH Nonghyup Financial Group and later became chairman of the Financial Services Commission. Lim is relatively free from factional issues and has practical experience leading the merger of Commercial Bank and Hanil Bank in 1998 when he was head of the Banking System Division at the Ministry of Finance and Economy. During his tenure as chairman of the Financial Services Commission in 2016, he also designed the privatization of Woori Bank through a controlling shareholder method. However, Lim faces the major challenge of overcoming the 'government control controversy.' The Woori Financial labor union is strongly opposing Lim, even placing advertisements in newspapers against him.