Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Byung-oh pledged to push a “financial overhaul” with greater speed in the new year of 2026, aiming for a major national leap forward and growth for all.

In his New Year’s address on Wednesday, Kim described 2025 as the year of restoring livelihoods and 2026 as the first year of a national leap forward. He set three policy directions: productive finance, inclusive finance and trusted finance.

Kim first stressed that he would begin delivering results from productive finance that opens the future. He said bold investment would be made in advanced industries that will underpin the future of the South Korean economy through the 150 trillion won National Growth Fund launched last year.

He also laid out measures to strengthen the competitiveness of the financial industry itself. Kim said he would support the financial industry’s development into an AI-based advanced industry and work to foster a sound digital-asset ecosystem. On revitalising the capital market, he said he would entrench a “one-strike-out” system and shareholder protection principles, and raise trust and innovation in the KOSDAQ market to drive shared growth for people and companies.

He also pledged to expand inclusive finance for low-income people and vulnerable groups. Kim said he would revamp policy finance products for ordinary people to ease the high-interest burden on financially excluded groups and institutionalise the contributions of financial companies. This is interpreted as meaning he will create institutional mechanisms for the sector’s social responsibility beyond simple recommendations.

He also said he would improve debt restructuring and debt collection practices so finance serves as a safety net that provides practical help to people’s lives.

Kim said efforts would continue to stabilise financial markets and restore trust. He stressed he would closely monitor potential risks such as household debt and real-estate project financing and implement pre-emptive market-stabilisation measures if needed. He also said the system to protect consumers from financial crimes and incidents and to provide swift relief to victims would be strengthened.

Kim urged financial professionals to develop an eye for discovering innovative companies, citing the story of Baekrak, who recognised famed horses in the Warring States period.

He said there are always horses with the qualities of a “thousand-li horse”, but they become one only after meeting Baekrak. He urged that innovation and start-up dreams across South Korea meet finance to become a “Jeoktomah”, and that finance also advances together this year.