NH NongHyup Bank creates consumer protection committee, strengthens board-led governance

NH NongHyup Bank announced Monday that it is significantly overhauling its consumer protection governance to strengthen the rights of financial consumers and reinforce trust-based management. The bank plans to deliberate and approve the relevant agenda at a board of directors meeting on Thursday, then formally launch a board-centered consumer protection framework.

The core of the restructuring is to strengthen consumer protection decision-making and oversight functions around the board of directors, while institutionally guaranteeing the independence and expertise of the chief consumer officer, or CCO.

Through the board vote, NH NongHyup Bank will establish a Consumer Protection Committee as a subcommittee within the board. The dedicated committee, sitting within the bank's highest decision-making body, will handle major consumer protection issues with greater depth and expertise going forward.

The Consumer Protection Committee will serve as a control tower, setting the bank's policy direction on financial consumer protection and independently deliberating and deciding on key consumer protection issues. Through this structure, the bank aims to establish the protection of consumer rights as the top priority across all areas of its management.

Alongside this, the bank is tightening the appointment and dismissal procedures for the CCO. NH NongHyup Bank has codified the appointment and removal of the CCO as matters requiring board approval, ensuring independence from executive management.

In particular, the bank has set a strict threshold for dismissing the CCO, requiring approval from at least two-thirds of all board members. This creates an institutional foundation that allows consumer protection policy to be pursued consistently, without being swayed by short-term business performance or shifts in the management environment.

"This governance restructuring goes beyond simply reforming systems — it is a strong declaration of our commitment to making consumer protection the top priority in bank management," NH NongHyup Bank President Kang Tae-young said. "We will continue to rigorously practice customer-centered management and transform ourselves into the bank most trusted by our customers."

Meanwhile, Park Jang-soon, the bank's current executive vice president overseeing the consumer protection division, will take on the role of CCO under the new Consumer Protection Committee.