President Ji Sung-kyoo of KEB Hana Bank.

Hana Financial Group appears to have bowed to pressure from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and deciding to dump the current head of its flagship banking unit, who has a thorny relationship with the regulator.

The group nominated KEB Hana Bank Vice President Ji Sung-kyoo as the bank's new CEO, Feb. 28, after incumbent Ham Young-joo, who has been accused of overlooking all

eged hiring irregularities at the bank, decided not to run for a third term.
Market observers said Ham was likely to serve consecutive terms as he successfully led the bank's business after the integration of Hana and the Korea Exchange Bank in September 2015.

However, he faced a tall hurdle as the FSS recently expressed its concerns about him in a meeting with three outside directors of Hana Financial Group, Feb. 26.
During the meeting, FSS officials talked about the "negative impact" Ham's situation would have on the bank's financial stability and credibility.

With President Han withdrawing his candidacy for the next CEO of Hana Bank due to the negative impact raised by FSS on his candidacy, he had only to compete with Vice President Hwang Hyo-sang for the nomination.

But he easily won the nomination as VP Hwang. President-designate Ji Sung-kyoo is being regarded as the right man to lead the bank’s globalization in line with Hana Financial Group Chairman Kim Jung-tae’s globalization strategy.

He is what they called, the bank’s “China hand,” having spend some 20 years with the bank’s branches in a number of key cities in China. Starting with assistant manager of the bank’s Hong Kong branch in 2001m he held a number of key positions in the bank’s units in China, including the manager of the Shenyang branch and president of Hana Bank China Co., a wholly-owned local subsidiary in China spearheading the bank’s exploration of the Chinese financial market.

Joining the then Hana Bank in 1991, incoming CEO Ji has served in various posts at the group before he was appointed vice president of global businesses. He will be officially appointed to the CEO post during a general shareholders' meeting slated for March 21.

Born in 1963, Ji graduated from Yonsei University with a degree in business before he joined Hana Bank.

Although CEO Ham withdraw his candidacy voluntarily not forced by any high-ranking official from the Hana Financial Group solely on account of the FSS expressed concern that Ham has been under investigation for his alleged meddling with the bank’s new hiring.

But the FSS expression its concern with Ham’s alleged personnel hiring meddling would continue to be an issue as the financial authorities meddling with the personnel moves of an individual bank.

Ham should have been allowed to continue to stay as a candidate for the bank’s presidency and allowed to serve his third term as the CEO of the bank if he won the nomination, financial sources said.

Along with Ji, Hana Financial Group also nominated CEOs of the group's nine subsidiaries, including Hana Card and F&I. KEB Hana Bank Vice President Chang Kyung-hoon was nominated as Hana Card's new CEO, and former Hana Financial Group executive Kwak Chul-seung as F&I's new CEO.

The five incumbent CEOs of Hana Financial Group subsidiaries, including Hana Capital, Fund Service and Financial Investment, will serve consecutive terms.

A view of KEB Hana Bank building in Seoul. (Photos: KEB Hana Bank)