Institutions in the Provinces, Heads in the Capital
③ Many Heads of Fund-Managing Quasi-Governmental Organizations, Including Korea Workers’ Compensation & Welfare Service, ‘Live in Seoul’

[BizHankook] Currently, there are 12 fund-managing quasi-governmental organizations in South Korea. Excluding the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, and the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation, nine of these have their headquarters outside the Seoul metropolitan area. However, it appears that many of the heads of these non-capital-based organizations reside in the metropolitan area. A fund-managing quasi-governmental organization refers to a public institution that directly manages government funds or has been entrusted with the management of such funds under the National Finance Act.

Among the fund-managing quasi-governmental organizations located outside the metropolitan area, the heads of the National Pension Service (NPS) and the Korea Asset Management Corporation (KAMCO) have been confirmed to reside in the same areas as their headquarters. NPS Chairman Kim Sung-joo lives in Jeonju, Jeonbuk, where the headquarters is located. KAMCO President Jeong Jeong-hun also resides in Busan, where his organization's headquarters is based.

In the case of the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME), the headquarters is in Jinju, Gyeongnam, but Chairman Kang Seok-jin lives in Geochang-gun, Gyeongnam. While not in the same city as the headquarters, he still resides within the Gyeongnam province.

Both Chairman Kim Sung-joo and Chairman Kang Seok-jin are former politicians. Chairman Kim ran for office in Jeonju during the 19th, 20th, and 21st general elections, winning in the 19th and 21st. Chairman Kang, a former county governor of Geochang, ran for the Sancheong-Hamyang-Geochang-Hapcheon district in the 20th and 21st general elections, winning in the 20th but losing in the 21st. Analysis suggests that both maintain local addresses because the possibility of a return to politics remains open.

Most other heads of organizations reside in the metropolitan area. Park Jong-gil (Korea Workers’ Compensation & Welfare Service), Kwon Hyung-taek (Korea Technology Finance Corporation), Kang Seung-jun (Korea Credit Guarantee Fund), and Kim Kyung-hwan (Korea Housing Finance Corporation) live in Seoul, while In Tae-yeon (Korea Small Business Institute) has an address in Incheon. Regarding the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, which are headquartered in Seoul, both Presidents Kim Sung-sik and Jang Young-jin reside in Seoul.

There are also counter-cases. The Korea Sports Promotion Foundation is headquartered in Songpa-gu, Seoul, yet Chairman Ha Hyung-joo is registered as living in Busan. Chairman Ha graduated from high school and university in Busan and was active in the city for a long time, serving as a Busan Metropolitan Council member and a professor at Dong-A University after retiring as a judo athlete. Although Chairman Ha has a leasehold right on an apartment in Seoul, his legal address remains in Busan.

Local communities outside the metropolitan area consistently voice demands for the heads of public institutions to actually reside in the region where their headquarters are located. The reason is that if executives and employees, including the heads of the organizations, live in the metropolitan area, the effect of the relocation is deemed insignificant. As the government plans to announce the second phase of public institution relocation soon, there is speculation that mandatory local residency for heads of institutions might be included in the plan. On August 14, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yun-duk stated during a press conference for his first anniversary in office, "The President’s first instruction was to challenge ourselves to have 'zero' institutions remaining in Seoul."