Financial Supervisory Service, and public financial institutional investors have to move out of Seoul by year-end?.. Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport mentioned "Jeonju"

The relocation of the Financial Services Commission, along with the Financial Supervisory Service and financial public institutional investors, to local areas is not expected to be confirmed until after November this year. The Financial Services Commission was initially considered a high-priority candidate for relocation since it can move to Sejong without requiring legislative amendments, but its absence from the initial relocation list has drawn attention. Some analyses suggest that due to strong opposition to relocating the Financial Supervisory Service and other financial public institutional investors, decisions on whether and when to relocate have been postponed until the end of the year.

According to the government on the 3rd, the Financial Services Commission was not mentioned in the plan for relocating central administrative institutions and public institutions announced by the government that day. The Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will relocate first in the first half of next year after amending laws, while the Prosecution Service (Major Crime Investigation Service) and the National Police Agency will relocate after constructing new buildings. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Unification, and the Ministry of National Defense were also mentioned to have specific timelines set for after 2030, when the Presidential Office relocates, but no concrete plans were disclosed for the Financial Services Commission.

The Financial Services Commission is a representative ministry that does not qualify as an institutional investor under the Sejong City Law excluding prior transfers to Sejong, meaning it can proceed with its relocation plan immediately without amending the law. Regarding why the FSC's relocation plan was omitted, Minister of the Interior and Safety Yoon Ho-jung explained, "Today's announcement does not mean that (the omission) indicates exclusion," adding, "We will finalize the relocation plan and identify the relocating institutional investors in the fourth quarter and issue a public notice."

In this regard, various interpretations are emerging from the financial sector. While some predict that the Financial Supervisory Service will remain in Seoul, more weight is being placed on the interpretation that a package relocation plan may be announced alongside the move of public financial institutional investors. Yoon (Minister) also stated, "Rather than moving all institutional investors uniformly at the same time,"

"We will emphasize the policy of proceeding step by step to ensure there is no administrative gap, taking into account the working conditions and preparation status of each institutional investor."

The strong opposition from financial public institutional investors, including the Financial Supervisory Service, Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, Korea Development Bank, and Export-Import Bank of Korea, is also assessed to have influenced the previous methods and timing. Although it was initially expected that a plan for relocating public institutional investors would be announced alongside the central government relocation proposal, the plan for relocating public institutional investors has been postponed until after the fourth quarter, reflecting awareness of the strong opposition from these institutional investors.

The Financial Services Commission has also raised the possibility that Sejong Bank may relocate to other regions such as Busan and Jeonju, rather than moving to Sejong. In particular, Kim Yun-deok, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, cited the National Pension Service Investment Management Office, which relocated to the Jeonju Innovation City, stating, "After the relocation, there were no significant changes until recently, but KB Kookmin Bank and several other banks have gathered in the Jeonju area, creating a clustering effect. We will strengthen and develop such initiatives." This led to speculation about the possibility of the Financial Services Commission or public financial institutional investors relocating to Jeonju. However, Kim (Minister) drew a line after the briefing by meeting with reporters, saying, "Jeonju was merely cited as an example; no specific plans for the relocation of public financial institutional investors were mentioned."

A financial industry official said, "Judging solely from today's announcement, it is difficult to clearly determine whether the Financial Supervisory Service intends to relocate," adding, "Even if relocation occurs, it could be deprioritized by other ministries, and there remains a possibility that Sejong will not be the destination." Another official remarked, "Given the focus on institutional investor functions, I believe Seoul may remain as finance is an industry where clustering generates synergies."

As the government has publicly discussed the timing of its fourth-quarter announcement, it is highly likely that the decision on whether to relocate financial institutions and public financial entities will be finalized around November, taking into account schedules such as the national audit. Until then, anxiety and opposition among the targeted financial institutions are expected to intensify. The National Federation of Financial Industry Unions (Financial Union) has opposed the push to relocate state-owned banks and public financial entities to local areas and is set to launch a general strike on the 4th. Unions from commercial banks and local banks are also expected to join, advocating for the suspension of discussions on relocating financial institutions.