Governor Zhin Woong-seob of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is officially installed  at an inaugural ceremony.(Photo:FSS)

The new governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, Zhin Woong-seob, said at a ceremony in Yeouido, Seoul, that he will focus on the prevention of financial crimes while recovering the public’s trust in the FSS. He will achieve this by strengthening internal operations, thereby winning back the trust of the financial community and financial authorities. 

He told local media that trust in the financial industry is the most urgent priority in running the FSS, recalling that a number of financial incidents occurred in recent months, severly damaging the trust of the financial industry. “I will try to see that no such incidents happen during my watch as I will tighten the internal control of FSS and reform the managing structure to change the management practices at the financial institutions to ensure that no similar incidents would happen,” he said.

Zhin assumed office on Nov. 19

 Zhin said he will also lead the FSS to take measures to protect the financial industry from the impacts of the economic slowdown in advanced nations and uncertainties surrounding Korea’s slow economic growth. The FSS will “faithfully” stick to its original mission, which is to maintain the health of the financial structure ing, the new FSS chief said. Zhin shied away from making more comments when asked if there would be a personnel shake-up at the FSS. It’s an issue because 10 out of 12 high-level officials are older than 55.

Zhin was the Zhin of Korea Finance Corp. before being named as governor of the FSS. He took office following a presidential approval of his appointment.

 The FSC, in a meeting on Nov. 18 headed by Commissioner Shin Je-yoon, approved the resignation of Gov. Choi Soo-hyun of the FSS, naming Zhin to succeed Choi. 

 Zhin attended Konkuk University after quitting Dongji Commercial High School in Pohang, and passing the qualification examination. He got a job with the government as a seventh grade clerk. He later passed the 28th National High Civil Service Examination. He worked for the Ministry of Finance, holding important jobs. He later held a string of high-level jobs at the ministry, including Director-General of the Capital Market Bureau and assistant minister for the financial information analysis office. From February, he was named to head the Korea Finance Corp., an affiliate of the KDB Financial Group. 

 Zhin is known for his smooth, but matter-of-fact personality, getting high respect from his colleagues and bosses as a devout Christian with a positive and responsible manner. Those at the FSS are already looking forward to having him as their top boss, knowing that he has a lot of experience in financial matters from his days working for the FCS and the Ministry of Finance. He is also expected to build close relations with the government, taking advantage of his experience as a former bureaucrat.

The Financial Supervisory Service was established on Jan. 2, 1999, under the Act on the Establishment of Financial Supervisory Organizations, by bringing together four supervisory bodies-Banking Supervisory Authority, Securities Supervisory Board, Insurance Supervisory Board, and Non-bank Supervisory Authority-into a single supervisory organization. The primary function of the FSS is examination and supervision of financial institutions, but can extend to other oversight and enforcement functions as charged by the Financial Services Commission (the former Financial Supervisory Commission) and the Securities and Futures Commission.