South Korea regulator widens responsibilities maps from insurers to savings banks

FSC invites $0.49b savings banks into pilot ahead of 2 July 2026.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced on 14 January that it will pilot a “responsibilities mapping” system for large specialised credit finance companies and savings banks.

This initiative aims to strengthen internal controls by clearly defining the specific duties of individual executives to prevent financial misconduct.

Under the pilot programme, specialised credit firms with assets of at least $3.5b (₩5t) and savings banks with assets of $0.49b (₩700b) or more are invited to submit their maps to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) by 10 April 2026.

This voluntary participation comes ahead of the official 2 July 2026 deadline mandated by the Act on Corporate Governance of Financial Companies.

The regulatory shift follows a phased rollout across the financial sector. Banks and financial holding companies were required to submit their maps by 2 January 2025, whilst large insurance companies and investment firms with assets over $3.5b (₩5t) face a 2 July 2025 deadline.

Smaller insurers and investment firms with assets under $3.5b (₩5t) share the same 2026 deadline as the credit and savings bank sectors.

To encourage early adoption, the FSC and FSS are offering several incentives for companies that join the pilot.

Participants will receive specialised consultations from the FSS and will not face sanctions for internal control failures during the trial period.

Additionally, if a firm identifies and corrects its own internal violations during the pilot, the authorities may reduce or waive potential penalties.

Once the system is officially in place, chief executives and other senior officers will be legally accountable for the oversight and risk management of their specific business lines.

The new framework is designed to move away from perfunctory compliance, ensuring that management takes direct responsibility for maintaining ethical standards and operational integrity.

($1.00 = ₩1,426.12)