The absence of major bank CEOs from the initial witness list for the National Assembly's audit has stalled proceedings, but recent hacking and personal data breaches have prompted lawmakers to push for their recall. The aim is to question the bank leaders about the causes and responsibilities related to these security incidents, and if witnesses are selected, inquiries may expand to include governance structures and executive accountability within financial holding companies.
According to the National Assembly and the financial sector on October 7, the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee is discussing the inclusion of five bank CEOs as additional witnesses. The initial witness list approved by the committee had excluded all major financial holding company chairs and bank CEOs, making it difficult to directly address executive accountability on key issues such as governance structure.
However, with the recent spate of hacking and customer data breaches in the financial sector, discussions about recalling bank CEOs have gained momentum. Concerns over customer data protection and security systems have led to calls for the highest-ranking bank executives to explain the causes of these incidents and their responses.
Park Sang-hyuk, a member of the ruling Democratic Party and the committee's secretary, stated on social media on October 2, "We cannot simply watch as customer data leaks repeatedly from banks that manage the public's assets and credit information. We will summon the CEOs of commercial banks as witnesses to rigorously question the causes and responsibilities behind these security incidents and to establish measures that will reassure the public."
If the committee's secretaries from both parties agree on the selection of bank CEOs as witnesses, a resolution will be passed during the committee's audit on October 8. If approved, the five bank CEOs are expected to attend the audit scheduled for October 19 with the Financial Supervisory Service.
The direct impetus for recalling the bank CEOs stems from the hacking and data breach incidents. Questions are anticipated to focus on the circumstances surrounding the data leaks, internal control systems, and the causes of security incidents, as well as measures to prevent their recurrence.
However, if the bank CEOs do testify, inquiries are likely to extend beyond just security incidents. Some bank CEOs also participate in the boards of their financial holding companies, which means lawmakers may also question them about governance structures and executive responsibilities, according to committee members.
Park Hong-bae, a member of the Democratic Party, stated in a conversation with this publication, "Some bank CEOs are involved in the boards of financial holding companies or serve as non-executive directors, making them key figures in governance. Therefore, alongside the recent hacking and data breach incidents, we can also raise questions regarding the governance structure of financial holding companies."
He mentioned specific instances where governance issues were highlighted during inspections by the Financial Supervisory Service, as well as the so-called 'self-reappointment' controversy, indicating that even if the chair of the financial holding company does not attend, they will question the bank CEOs involved in decision-making regarding governance issues and the roles of executives.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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