Preliminary Data Requests Sent 2-3 Months Before Regular Inspection
Shinhan Bank Received Preliminary Data Request in Early March
Bank Inspection Division Currently Focused on Woori Financial Group Management Evaluation
Other Tasks Virtually Impossible Until March
Woori Financial Group and KB Financial Group Inspections to Be Completed Starting April
Shinhan Bank Regular Inspection Expected in May
The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) will commence the regular inspection of Shinhan Bank as scheduled in May. It is expected to complete the inspection tasks sequentially after first finishing the management evaluation of Woori Financial Group.
On the 13th, a financial authority official stated, "The FSS sends preliminary data requests to the target banks 2 to 3 months before the regular inspection," adding, "It takes about a month for the target bank to organize the data, and about another month for the FSS to review the received data. After completing this entire process, the regular inspection begins."
Previously, Shinhan Bank became aware of an employee's embezzlement and is currently conducting an internal audit. The embezzlement amount has been identified as approximately 1.7 billion KRW so far, but depending on the audit results, it is expected to increase to at least 3 to 4 billion KRW. The employee responsible for the financial misconduct was transferred to the Samseong-dong branch before resigning and is currently absconding. With the FSS's regular inspection scheduled this year, Shinhan Bank is likely to undergo a rigorous examination due to the internal employee embezzlement incident.
However, the FSS has stated that it will not advance the schedule of the regular inspection. The Bank Inspection Division 1 is responsible for the regular inspections of the four major financial holding companies. Currently, Bank Inspection Division 1 prioritizes completing the management evaluation grading work for Woori Financial Group. The FSS plans to deliver the grades to the Financial Services Commission by March at the latest.
Therefore, considering the workload and personnel of the FSS Bank Inspection Division 1, it seems difficult to advance the regular inspection of Shinhan Bank. An FSS official explained, "Currently, the staff of Bank Inspection Division 1 are fully focused on the management evaluation grading work for Woori Financial Group," adding, "After completing the grading work for Woori Financial Group, we plan to finish the inspection tasks for Woori Financial Group (Woori Bank) and KB Financial Group (KB Kookmin Bank)."
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