"National Pension Fund Management Should Be Expert-Led… An Independent Agency Must Be Established" (2026.02.26.)

A proposal has been put forward calling for reforms to secure the independence of National Pension Fund management, including the creation of a separate "Fund Management Corporation" distinct from the National Pension Service (NPS).

The Pension Future Forum, an association of pension specialists, held a seminar on the 25th at the National Assembly Members' Office Building and declared that "investment decisions must be made with the interests of pension contributors as the foremost priority, grounded in professional expertise and independence."

Kim Hak-ju, Professor at Dongguk University and an advisory committee member of the 22nd National Assembly Special Committee on Pension Reform, argued in his lead presentation that

"the current structure of the National Pension Fund Management Committee must be shifted from one centered on contributor representatives to one centered on investment professionals,"

adding that "qualified experts should constitute at least 70% of the committee, and government officials should be barred from participation or limited to an observer role."

[Passage omitted]

Professor Kim cited the example of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), which constitutes an independent board of directors and formulates and executes investment strategy under the leadership of a Chief Investment Officer (CIO)

and designs its asset allocation, arguing that political influence over fund management must be minimized.

He further stated that the eligibility requirements for investment committee members—including professional expertise—should be codified in law, and that an independent nominating committee should be established.

Under the CPPIB model, eligibility criteria are set by regulation and an independent nominating committee submits a slate of candidates for board membership,

after which the members are appointed through consultation between the federal Minister of Finance and the provincial governments.

Professor Kim also explained that countries such as Japan and the Netherlands likewise maintain regulations governing the professional qualifications of fund management committee members.

On the basis of these measures, he argued that a "Fund Management Corporation" should be newly established to secure independence in fund management.

His proposal entails transferring ownership and management authority over the fund from the current National Pension Service to an independent investment corporation, and either establishing an independent board of directors or converting the Fund Management Committee into a supervisory committee.

He also emphasized prohibiting informal external interference and instituting continuous monitoring of the investment decision-making process through the introduction of an independent compliance officer system.

https://n.news.naver.com/article/374/0000494697?sid=101