SEOUL– A former high-ranking official handling policy coordination under the Park Geun-hye government has been selected as a sole candidate for the head of Nonghyup Financial Group Inc., the group said Monday.

The group’s executive recommendation committee chose Lee Suk-joon as the candidate to lead Nonghyup Financial Group, one of the country’s major financial holding firms, according to the group.

If approved by its board and shareholders, he will start a two-year term on Jan. 1.

“With the financial environment confronting uncertainty caused by multifaceted factors, Lee has been recommended as the candidate as he is deemed to be the right person who can provide the path forward and design for the new 10 years of NH Nonghyup,” the committee said.

Lee served as second vice finance minister handling budget affairs in 2013. He worked as head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination from 2016-17 under the conservative Park Geun-hye administration.

Lee also joined President Yoon Suk-yeol’s election camp, helping him with economic and financial policy in the early phase of his campaign, and served as a special adviser to Yoon after his election in March this year.

He is to replace Son Byung-hwan, who had been expected to stay in office for another year after his two-year term ends later this year as did his predecessors.

NH Nonghyup Financial Group reported a net profit of 621.2 billion won (US$475.7 million) in the third quarter, up 14.4 percent from a year earlier.

NH, or Nonghyup, refers to the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, whose key stakeholders include farms and other agricultural businesses.

Source: Yonhap News Agency