이 기사는 2022년 02월 28일 08:09 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.

South Korea’s KB Financial Group has nominated Choi Jae-Hong, a multimedia engineering professor at Gangneung-Wonju National University, as an outside director on its board in an effort to enhance board diversity by adding a digital expert.

Choi is replacing Stuart B. Solomon, former chairman of Metlife Korea, whose term on the board of directors will end in March, the financial services holding company said on Thursday.

Additionally, Lee Jae-keun, Kookmin Bank’s newly appointed chief executive officer, will also replace his predecessor, Heo In, as a inside director on the holding company’s board.

KB Financial’s nine-member board comprises seven outside directors and two inside directors. One of the inside directors is KB Financial Group chairman and CEO Yoon Jong-kyoo, and the other seat has traditionally been taken by a CEO of Kookmin Bank, which is wholly owned by the holding company.

KB Financial will seek shareholder approval for its board nominees at its annual general meeting scheduled for March 25. Another outside director nominee proposed by Kookmin Bank’s labor union will also be voted on at the upcoming general meeting.

Choi’s presence will increase the diversity of the company’s board. Born in 1962, Choi is an expert in digital technology. He completed his PhD in electronic engineering at Hanyang University and served as an adviser to NHN Japan and as an outside director on Kakao Corp’s board from 2014 to 2020.

The other six outside directors on KB Financial’s board have expertise in corporate finance, financial markets, laws and regulations, business management, consumer protection, accounting and risk management.

As digital transformation accelerates, boards of South Korean financial services holding companies have been stepping up efforts to enhance their expertise in digital technology in recent years. Shinhan Financial Group added Choi Kyong-rok, CYS CEO and an IT expert, to its board and Hana Financial Group named digital expert Kwon Sook-gyo as an external director.

KB Financial chairman Yoon has centered the group’s strategy on expanding its digital platform. “We will focus our resources and efforts to expand the role of the KB Star Banking application and transform the group into a leading financial platform company,” Yoon said in a New Year’s message to employees. (Reporting by Hee-yeon Han)