The Financial Services Commission has launched its sixth ombudsman to improve unreasonable regulations and practices in the financial sector. The appointment of Moon Mi-ran, chair of the Korea Consumer Agency Council, as chair aims to enhance the role of consumer groups in protecting financial consumers.
On October 20, the Financial Commission held a ceremony at the Government Seoul Building to appoint Moon Mi-ran as chair, along with four other external experts.
The new ombudsman includes Moon, Kim Hyun-soo, dean of the Busan National University Law School representing the banking sector, Seo Jun-sik, a professor of economics at Soongsil University representing the financial investment sector, Jeong Ji-yeon, secretary-general of the Korea Consumer Federation representing the insurance sector, and Joo Soo-hyun, a professor of consumer studies at Ewha Womans University representing consumers and small businesses. Their term will last for two years.
Notably, both the chair and the insurance sector representative are from consumer organizations, ensuring that the voices of financial consumers are actively reflected in the oversight of regulatory practices by financial authorities.
The Financial Commission's ombudsman was established in February 2016 to independently review administrative regulations and consumer protection systems from a neutral perspective. It recommends improvements to unreasonable financial administrative guidance and supervisory practices while addressing grievances from financial companies and consumers.
Since its inception, the ombudsman has reviewed a total of 333 improvement tasks, accepting 162 either fully or partially. The previous fifth ombudsman reviewed 40 tasks and accepted 14, achieving outcomes such as raising the limit for youth prepaid transportation cards from 50,000 won to 100,000 won and easing the requirement for written consent from insured parties when changing beneficiaries.
Lee Ok-yeon, chair of the Financial Commission, stated, "With the spread of AI and digital finance, the potential for new inconveniences for financial consumers and institutional blind spots is increasing. The role of the ombudsman in identifying and addressing these issues in a timely manner is more important than ever."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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