KB board pressures chairman to quit

KB Financial Group’s board on Monday urged its chairman Lim Young-rok to voluntarily resign following the financial regulator’s decision to suspend the KB chief last week.

During a two-hour board meeting, a majority of KB Financial’s directors agreed that Lim’s resignation would be inevitable for the group’s stability, a KB spokesman said in an emailed statement.

If Lim does not quit voluntarily, the chairman would likely be dismissed during the board’s meeting Wednesday, KB officials said.

“We understand how he feels about this, but the chairman needs to acknowledge the fact that the general opinion is no longer favorable to him,” a board member told a local daily on condition of anonymity.

“The situation needs to come under control as soon as possible for the stability of the group and KB employees,” he added.

The KB board currently consists of nine members without Lim, who was exempted due to his three-month suspension order by the Financial Services Commission.

The move may give more push for the financial regulators who have been stepping up efforts to oust the chairman from his post.

On Monday, the FSC lodged a complaint with the prosecution against Lim and three key KB executives for interfering with the company’s operations, while pushing for the change of its main computing system supplier from IBM to Unix.

The move was seen as a punitive measure for Lim, who refused to resign when the financial watchdog ordered Lim and Lee Kun-ho, CEO of group’s flagship unit, Kookmin Bank, to resign. Lee immediately stepped down from his post.

Lim and the three executives are currently suspected of illegal practices involved in changing the system, such as concealing security risks of the Unix system.

Lim, who was assigned to the post in July 2013, has vowed to take all possible measures including legal actions to get to the bottom of the matter.

The Financial Supervisory Service said it has dispatched 27 supervisors to 10 KB affiliates, including its card, investment security and bank units, to monitor their management and business operations.

By Suk Gee-hyun (monicasuk@heraldcorp.com)