New South Korea’s pension fund chief blocked

The new chief executive of the National Pension Service is facing a delay in getting to work as the union physically blocked him from entering his office. Kim Tae-hyun, a former senior official at the top financial regulator, was accused of being a placeholder underqualified to deal with pension reform. Kim told the union that he doesn’t call himself a pension expert but he is not entirely unfamiliar with pension services. Kim wants to peacefully resolve the differences, potentially preventing him from spearheading a new campaign to start reforms at the NPS to avoid the depletion of its reserves by 2055. Kim said he would put priority on fund sustainability, and that structural changes would take place as he listens to not only what his employees have to say, but also the voices of ordinary Koreans.