A bill to restrict financial holding company chairs from serving a third consecutive term has been introduced by the Rebuilding Korea Party, a member of the broader ruling bloc.
Rep. Shin Jang-sik of the Rebuilding Korea Party on May 31 formally proposed an amendment to the Financial Company Governance Act that would limit financial holding company chairs to a single reappointment, capping their total tenure at six years. At a press conference held at the National Assembly after submitting the bill, Shin said, "We cannot talk about internal controls and soundness while leaving intact the structure of long-term rule and conflicts of interest among financial holding company chairs." He added, "This bill is the minimum starting point for financial governance reform." The Korean Financial Industry Union attended the press conference.
In addition to the tenure cap on financial holding company chairs, the amendment removes an exception clause within provisions allowing concurrent positions, effectively prohibiting full-time executives at holding companies from concurrently serving as executives at subsidiaries.
The amendment is broadly similar to a bill introduced in January 2022 during the 21st National Assembly by former Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Park Yong-jin. Political observers have noted that momentum for reviving the "third-term ban" could build as Park recently took the post of vice chair of the Presidential Regulatory Reform Committee, a minister-level position. The Democratic Party is reportedly discussing a separate proposal to improve governance at financial holding companies, apart from the current bill. The government is also conducting related discussions, led by financial authorities.