Korea Investment & Securities CEO Kim Sung-hwan named non-standing vice chairman of KOFIA

The Korea Financial Investment Association has appointed Kim Sung-hwan, CEO of Korea Investment & Securities, as its non-standing vice chairman.

The association held its first extraordinary general meeting of 2026 on Friday and announced Kim's appointment. His two-year term runs from Saturday through Sept. 4, 2028.

Kim, born in 1969, graduated from Korea University with a degree in economics and completed a doctoral program at Konkuk University's Graduate School of Real Estate. He has held positions including head of the retail customer group (executive vice president) and head of the investment banking division (executive managing director) at Korea Investment & Securities, where he currently serves as CEO.

With Kim's addition, the association now has two non-standing vice chairmen, alongside Kim Young-sung, CEO of KB Asset Management. The association's board of directors includes Chairman Hwang Sung-yeop, the chair of the self-regulatory committee, member directors and public-interest directors.

Kim is a project financing specialist who has worked in the domestic real estate PF market since its early days. He joined LG Investment & Securities' PF team in 2001 and moved to Korea Investment & Securities in 2005, where he went on to lead the debt capital markets division, project finance division, real estate finance unit and project finance headquarters. He was named head of the IB group in 2016, executive vice president for management planning in 2017 and head of the retail customer group in 2019, before becoming president and CEO in 2024.

In the PF field, Kim is credited with introducing project financing during his time at Kyobo Life and, at LG Investment & Securities, with helping establish a dedicated real estate PF unit and developing PF-backed securitization products. After becoming the youngest executive managing director in 2012, he led the IB group, management planning and the retail customer group, gaining broad experience across corporate finance and retail — the two core pillars of the securities industry.

His appointment is expected to strengthen the industry's voice on issues surrounding large-scale investment banks and the broader securities sector, as a sitting CEO of a major firm joins the association's board. He is particularly expected to play a coordinating role between the industry and financial regulators on matters related to capital utilization at large brokerages, corporate finance and the supply of venture capital.

Kim's appointment also carries symbolic weight as it continues a tradition of Korea Investment & Securities CEOs serving as non-standing vice chairman of the association. He becomes the third person from the firm to hold the post, following former CEOs Yoo Sang-ho and Jung Il-moon.