"Multiple Homeowners Out of Real Estate Policy" Following Lee's Order... Initial Review Targets FSC Grade 4 Officials and FSS Team Leaders

Financial Services Commission and Financial Supervisory Service Begin Review of Real Estate Holdings Among Loan Regulation Staff
FSC to Initially Review Up to Grade 4 Officials; Considering Expansion to Grade 5 Assistant Directors
FSS May Includ

President Lee Jaemyung has instructed the exclusion of public officials who own multiple homes or expensive non-residential properties from the decision-making process for real estate policy. In response, financial authorities have begun reviewing their internal status. The Financial Services Commission, which is responsible for loan regulations—a core element of real estate policy—has set the inspection scope to include officials up to the rank of Grade 4 (Section Chief) for now, and is leaving open the possibility of expanding the review to Grade 5 (Assistant Director) positions depending on forthcoming detailed guidelines from the presidential office.

According to financial authorities on March 24, the Financial Services Commission is currently reviewing the housing ownership status of its executives, focusing on the Financial Policy Bureau and including officials at the director (Grade 2), deputy director (Grade 3), and section chief (Grade 4) levels. An official from the Financial Services Commission stated, "We are identifying the relevant status in accordance with the instructions from the presidential office," and added, "If more detailed guidelines are issued, we will consider expanding the scope to include assistant directors."

Currently, the organization within the Financial Services Commission responsible for real estate loan regulations is the Financial Policy Division under the Financial Policy Bureau. All relevant personnel within this line, including the top three executives—the Chairman, Vice Chairman, and Secretary-General—are subject to this review. The Financial Services Commission is also preparing for the possibility that the scope of the real estate ownership inspection could be expanded to include Grade 5 (Assistant Director) positions. The presidential office is set to finalize the detailed criteria, including excluded ranks, within this week.

This measure was taken upon the instruction of President Lee. On March 22, President Lee announced on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), "I have directed the presidential office and cabinet to exclude multiple-home owners, non-residential high-value property owners, and those with excessive real estate holdings from discussions, drafting, reporting, and approval processes related to housing and real estate policies." In line with this, key ministries responsible for real estate policy, such as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the Financial Services Commission, have begun reviewing the property holdings of staff members most closely related to real estate policy work.

The Financial Services Commission has also requested the Financial Supervisory Service to review the property holdings of staff involved in real estate policy. Since the Financial Supervisory Service supervises and inspects the financial sector, and the Financial Services Commission formulates policy based on this, both organizations closely cooperate on all financial policies related to real estate. Accordingly, the Financial Supervisory Service is also included in the application of the presidential office's guidelines.

An official from the Financial Services Commission stated, "The same criteria will be applied to the Financial Supervisory Service, and we are considering including team leaders in the review." An official from the Financial Supervisory Service explained, "The specific criteria will be determined in consultation with the Financial Services Commission."

The key issue is the scope of application. Within the Financial Supervisory Service, the departments under the Deputy Governor for Banking and Small and Medium Finance are responsible for loan regulations, and their purview is quite broad. While the Banking Risk Supervision Bureau primarily oversees real estate loan regulations, a significant portion also falls under the secondary financial sector, meaning many departments under the Deputy Governor could be included in the review.

Meanwhile, among the senior officials at the financial authorities whose assets have been publicly disclosed so far, none have been identified as owning multiple homes or expensive non-residential properties. Kim Eogwon, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, owns one home—'The H Firstier I'Park' in Gaepo-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul—where he resides. Vice Chairman Kwon Daeyoung is living on a jeonse (long-term lease) in Sangdo-dong, Seoul. He owns a 'Yeouido Xi' officetel in Yeouido-dong, Seoul, with a publicly announced value of about 700 million won, but it is classified as a commercial property, making him effectively without a residential property. Secretary-General Shin Jinchang owns an apartment in Hyangchon Lotte, Pyeongchon, Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, under his spouse's name, where they reside. Lee Chanjin, Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, owns one home—'Daerim Apartment' in Umyeon-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul—where he also resides. Until last year, he owned two homes but sold one after controversy arose.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.