Kim Jeong-gwan, the nominee for Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, disposed of all stocks with potential conflicts of interest, including those from his previous employer, Doosan Enerbility.
Kim, a former bureaucrat who served as president of Doosan Enerbility, is confirmed to have formed nearly 5.5 billion won in assets together with his spouse after resigning from public office.
According to Kim Seong-won, a member of the People Power Party who is part of the Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs, and Startups Committee, Kim stated in a response to a document submission request for the personnel hearing that he and his spouse sold shares that were deemed relevant to his duties, including those in Doosan Enerbility.
Earlier, Kim reported in materials submitted to the National Assembly that he holds stocks worth a total of 1.18 billion won, including Doosan Enerbility (642.27 million won) and Korea Electric Power Corporation (2.36 million won).
His spouse also holds securities worth 698.42 million won, including Doosan Enerbility (21.91 million won), Samsung Electronics (15.81 million won), and Korea Electric Power Corporation (1.96 million won).
According to the current Public Officials Ethics Act, high-ranking public officials and their interested parties must sell stocks or place them in a blind trust within two months if the total value of their holdings exceeds 30 million won.
It appears that Kim disposed of all conflict-of-interest stocks ahead of the personnel hearing scheduled for the 17th.
Kim reported a total of 6.5 billion won in assets for himself, his spouse, and their children. The assets reported when he resigned from the Ministry of Economy and Finance in 2018 were 1.02 billion won, indicating an increase of 5.49 billion won after moving to the corporations.
Kim reported an income of 5.54 billion won over the last five years. His spouse reported an income of 971.73 million won during the same period. She has worked as an executive in a bio-related company since 2020, following roles as a clinical researcher at a global pharmaceutical company.
Kim is a former economics bureaucrat who was regarded as a leading policy expert after passing the administrative examination and working in key positions at the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Bank of Korea. He was recruited as a vice president of Doosan Group in 2018 and recently worked his way up to president in charge of marketing at Doosan Enerbility.