Possible relocation to Sejong raises fears of deeper staff exodus

The prospect of relocating the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) outside Seoul is raising fears that it could accelerate an exodus of staff that is already well underway, according to industry officials Sunday.

The FSS is among the financial institutions being considered for relocation to Sejong, Korea’s administrative capital, as part of President Lee Jae Myung’s broader push to move government agencies out of the Seoul area and ease the country’s heavy concentration around the capital. The Cabinet is expected to begin deliberations as early as next week on the relocation drive.

FSS data show that 481 employees left the watchdog between 2022 and July 2026, with more than 100 departing each year. So far this year, 54 employees have already left.

Younger staff have accounted for a growing share of departures, with employees in their 20s, 30s and 40s accounting for 180, or 37.4 percent, of the total. They made up half of those who left this year.

Amid the ongoing staff exodus, the prospect of relocation has heightened concerns that the FSS could lose even more experienced professionals, including lawyers, accountants and other specialists.

In a survey of 1,538 employees conducted by the FSS labor union, 85.6 percent said they would consider leaving the organization if it were relocated outside Seoul. The figure rose to 92.5 percent among employees under 40.

In its Aug. 17 statement, the union warned that the government’s push could “end up moving the supervisory authority away from the front lines of oversight,” as Seoul’s concentration of banks, brokerages and other key market institutions makes close contact essential for authorities regarding issues that require rapid responses.

It added that there was no precedent among major developed economies for separating financial regulators from the centers of their capital markets, citing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Federal Reserve, the UK Financial Conduct Authority and Japan’s Financial Services Agency.

The unions of the FSS and the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation plan to hold a joint press conference outside Cheong Wa Dae Monday to publicly oppose the government’s relocation drive.

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