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4 clusters · 8 sources · 27 days · First seen · Last updated

South Korea policy chief Kim Yong-beom under pressure

Overview

In early July 2026, opposition lawmakers pressed South Korean policy chief Kim Yong-beom to resign after setbacks in the real‑estate and finance sectors. A Reform Party‑commissioned poll at month’s end showed 61 % of respondents wanted Kim removed, 58.2 % blamed the government’s economic policy for recent stock‑market turbulence, and 75.5 % criticised Kim’s remarks blaming individual investors.

On 3 August, former Seoul Metropolitan Council member Lee Jong‑bae filed a criminal complaint alleging that Kim abused his authority to pressure regulators into approving high‑risk, single‑stock leveraged ETFs tied to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. The ETFs, introduced on 27 May, aim to deliver twice the daily return of the underlying stocks, magnifying gains and losses and contributing to market volatility. President Lee Jae‑Myung convened a closed‑door meeting with senior aides, and regulators began tightening rules to curb speculative trading.

By 7 August, the People Power Party, led by lawmaker Jeong Jeom‑sik, intensified calls for Kim’s dismissal, citing his role in promoting the leveraged ETFs, his remarks on high interest rates, inflation and exchange rates, and a proposed “AI national dividend.” The ruling Democratic Party dismissed the accusations as political attacks that stoke market anxiety and labelled the demand for a special prosecutor a “matar‑door” stunt. The dispute underscores a broader partisan clash over South Korea’s economic strategy and market confidence.

Entities

Kim Yong‑beom · Reform Party (개혁신당) · Kim Yong-beom · People Power Party · Lee Jae‑myung

Timeline

  1. 6 days ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    South Korea opposition demands dismissal of policy chief Kim Yong-beom

    South Korea's opposition party urges the dismissal of policy chief Kim Yong‑beom over a leveraged ETF push and controversial economic remarks, while the ruling party calls the move a political attack.

  2. 10 days ago

    [POLITICS] 3 sources
    South Korean chief of staff Kim Yong-beom faces criminal complaint over leveraged ETFs

    South Korea’s policy chief Kim Yong-beom faces a criminal complaint for pushing risky single‑stock leveraged ETFs, sparking opposition calls for investigation and tighter market regulation.

  3. 13 days ago

    [POLITICS] 4 sources
    South Korea poll shows 61% demand removal of Kim Yong‑beom amid stock market anxiety

    South Korean poll: 61% want Kim Yong‑beom removed; 58% blame government policy for stock‑market worries; Lee Jun‑seok calls for a full economic policy review.

  4. about 1 month ago

    [POLITICS] 2 sources
    South Korea's policy chief Kim Yong-beom faces opposition calls to resign over real estate and finance setbacks

    South Korea's policy chief Kim Yong-beom was urged by the opposition to resign over real‑estate price hikes and high exchange rates, while he recently stressed AI‑era production capacity and semiconductor plans

Sources

biz.heraldcorp.com · koreaherald.com · m.imaeil.com · m.koreaherald.com · m.koreatimes.co.kr · news.heraldcorp.com · seoul.co.kr · stv.seoul.co.kr

This summary has been updated 2 times: see revision history