SEOUL, May 12 (AJP) —New governor Shin Hyun-song of the Bank of Korea has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Bank for International Settlements, extending South Korea’s representation at the top decision-making body of the global central banking community for a third consecutive term.
The BOK said Tuesday that Shin officially began his three-year term on Monday after being elected as an elected director during a regular board meeting held at the BIS headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. The term is renewable.
The central bank described the appointment as a sign of South Korea’s growing influence in international finance, noting that BOK governors have continuously held seats on the BIS Board since 2019 through successive appointments of former governors Lee Ju-yeol and Rhee Chang-yong.
The BIS Board serves as the de facto supreme decision-making body overseeing the institution’s strategy, governance and operational direction. The board meets at least six times annually and supervises key functions including amendments to BIS statutes, membership approvals and appointments of senior executives.
Board members also sit ex officio on the Economic Consultative Committee, which helps shape agendas for the BIS Global Economy Meeting, where governors from around 30 major central banks discuss global financial and monetary issues.
The 18-member board consists of six ex-officio directors representing the founding member central banks of the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Belgium, alongside the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The remaining 11 elected directors are selected by a two-thirds majority vote from among governors of other member central banks.
Current elected member countries include Japan, China, India, Canada, Saudi Arabia and South Korea.
Shin is widely regarded as one of Asia’s leading international finance experts. Before assuming the governorship of the BOK, he served for 12 years at the BIS as Economic Adviser and head of its Monetary and Economic Department until March this year.
The BOK said Shin’s extensive BIS experience, South Korea’s active contribution to global monetary discussions and his international reputation were reflected in the appointment.
The appointment also comes as South Korea’s role in global capital markets expands. The country operates one of the world’s largest non-deliverable forward currency markets alongside India, while expectations for long-term foreign capital inflows have strengthened following Korea’s inclusion in the World Government Bond Index.
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