Presidential hopefuls disclose assets: Ahn leads at W136.8b, Lee at W3.08b
Rep. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and a leading presidential contender if an early election is called, reported over 3 billion won ($2 million) in personal assets, government data showed Thursday.
According to annual asset disclosures released separately by the National Assembly's Ethics Committee and the Government Public Ethics Committee, Lee's total assets amounted to 3.08 billion won as of end-2023, down 26.13 million won from the previous year.
Lee jointly owns an apartment in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, with his wife Kim Hye-kyung. The apartment was valued at 1.456 billion won — up 4.97 percent from a year earlier. He also reported purchasing a 2024 Genesis G80 sedan. His financial assets include 1.584 billion won in bank savings and 138 million won in liabilities.
Among other presidential hopefuls from the Democratic Party, Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon — considered a key figure in the party's anti-Lee faction — reported assets worth 3.505 billion won, up 168.32 million won from the previous year.
From the ruling bloc, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon topped the list of sitting metropolitan mayors with 7.405 billion won in declared assets, marking an increase of 1.429 billion won on-year — the largest both in total assets and asset growth among regional government heads. The rise was attributed to gains in US stocks, including Nvidia and MicroStrategy, despite a decline in his bank deposits, according to local reports.
Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo ranked third among metropolitan mayors with 4.259 billion won in assets. Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo reported 1.07 billion won, about 30 million won more than what he declared during his confirmation hearing in November last year.
Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo of the ruling People Power Party was the wealthiest among all presidential hopefuls, with 136.8 billion won in declared assets. His portfolio includes 1.86 million shares of AhnLab, a cybersecurity company he founded prior to entering politics, valued at approximately 123.1 billion won.
Rep. Lee Jun-seok, leader of the minor conservative Reform Party and the first to officially declare his presidential bid, reported 1.471 billion won in assets.
Former Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum and former South Gyeongsang Gov. Kim Kyung-soo — both considered potential opposition candidates — as well as former People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon and former lawmaker Yoo Seong-min — key figures within the conservative bloc — were not subject to this round of asset disclosures as they neither hold public office nor serve in parliament.
According to a public opinion poll on support ratings for presidential hopefuls released Thursday by pollster Research View, Lee Jae-myung led the race with 48.3 percent support, followed by Kim Moon-soo (16.4 percent), Hong Joon-pyo (6.5 percent), Han Dong-hoon (5.7 percent), Oh Se-hoon (4.9 percent), and Kim Dong-yeon (3.1 percent).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
2 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Foreign inflow fuels Kospi rally
Foreign investors have poured nearly 4 trillion won ($3 billion) into the nation's benchmark Kospi so far this month, helping to drive a strong bullish run in the local stock market. Offshore investors net purchased shares worth 3.78 trillion won on the Kospi through Tuesday in June, continuing the 1.16 trillion won buying spree that began in May, according to data from the Korea Exchange, the nation's bourse operator. While they net bought shares worth 125 billion won on June 2, the amount surged on June 4, a day after the country's presidential election, to 1.05 trillion won, followed by a 980 billion won net purchase on June 5. On Monday and Tuesday, foreigners net bought shares amounting to 977 billion won and 634 billion won on the Kospi, respectively. The rally pushed the index to close daytime trading at 2871.85 on Tuesday, up 16.08 points or 0.56 percent, from the previous session. During intraday trading, the Kospi surged to as high as 2,885.67, nearing the 52-week high set at 2,896.43 on July 11 last year. The buying momentum has been partly fueled by growing expectations of political stability and reform following President Lee Jae-myung's election victory last week. 'With the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung administration, expectations for revisions to the Commercial Act and efforts to address the 'Korea Discount' have stimulated foreign investor inflows,' said Lee Kyoung-min, an analyst at Daishin Securities. 'Protection of minority shareholder rights and improvements in corporate governance — longstanding demands from global investors — remain key themes. Foreign investment flows into the Korean stock market have clearly improved against this backdrop of policy-driven optimism and attractive valuations.' Backed by the rally, the Kospi has emerged as the best-performing major stock market worldwide over the past week, outpacing key global indices such as Hong Kong's Hang Seng, Denmark's OMX Copenhagen 25 and Japan's Nikkei 225, according to a list compiled by financial platform While not exhaustive, the list features selected stock indices of significant size and market value. Year-to-date, the Kospi has risen 19.36 percent, ranking as the eighth-best performer globally. It trails Poland's WIG 20 index, the top performer so far this year, which has surged 24.67 percent, placing the Kospi roughly five percentage points behind. Among the indices that function as comprehensive market indices that reflect the overall performance of their respective national stock markets, the Kospi ranked behind only those of Russia, Germany, Austria and Hong Kong. The others, such as the WIG 20, were composed of a limited number of selected large-cap companies.
Korea Herald
3 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Cabinet approves W26b for presidential office relocation
The Cabinet on Tuesday earmarked 25.9 billion won (US$19 million) in state funds to relocate the presidential office to the former compound of Cheong Wa Dae, the presidential office said. President Lee Jae-myung approved the relocation plan in a Cabinet meeting earlier in the day, and the amount is roughly 69 percent of the budget spent to move the presidential office to Yongsan in central Seoul under the former administration, according to presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung. The presidential compound was relocated to the headquarters of the defense ministry in Yongsan a few months after former President Yoon Suk Yeol assumed office in May 2022. The old presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae, located on a secluded hilltop compound in central Seoul, has since been opened to the public for sightseeing visits. "To ensure a smooth return to Cheong Wa Dae and a better sightseeing environment for visitors, the operation schedule for Cheong Wa Dae tours will be adjusted," Kang said. "The return to Cheong Wa Dae will be conducted in phases on weekends and holidays." In a separate notice, the Cheong Wa Dae Foundation, which operates walking tours at the former presidential compound, said the current tour schedules will run through July 14, with changes set to take place starting from reservations for the July 16-31 period. All tours will temporarily halt from Aug. 1 for maintenance and security procedures until they resume after the relocation is completed. (Yonhap)
Korea Herald
6 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Lee Jae-myung picks vice ministers for finance, foreign affairs, industry
President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday filled six vice ministerial posts to pursue a speedy recovery from the economic crisis, ahead of his departure for Canada to attend the G7 summit next week. The nomination was aimed at safeguarding national interests by quickly deploying human resources amid economic recession in Asia's fourth-largest economy, the presidential office said. According to Lee's office, Lee named Lee Hyoung-il, commissioner of Statistics Korea, as the first vice finance minister. Lim Ki-keun, administrator of the Public Procurement Service, will serve as the second vice minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Two vice-minister posts at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were also filled. Park Yoon-joo, minister of the mission of South Korea to ASEAN, and Kim Jin-a, dean of the language and diplomacy division at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, will serve as the first and second vice ministers at the Foreign Ministry, respectively. Moon Shin-hak, spokesperson of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, was nominated as the first vice minister of trade, industry and energy. Yeo Han-koo was also reinstated as the minister of trade, a vice-ministerial position. He served in the same position from 2021 to 2022 under the former liberal Moon Jae-in administration. Vice ministers in South Korea do not require a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly before their appointment to the posts. "We promise to restore the administration that suffered a rupture after (former President Yoon Suk Yeol's) insurrection in a speedy manner," Lee's spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said. "We will create a government capable of overcoming the (aftermath of) global protectionism." Meanwhile, the presidential office announced that public access to Cheong Wa Dae will be partially restricted from July 16 to 31 and fully suspended starting August, as preparations for relocating the presidential office from Yongsan back to the historic compound in central Seoul begin. The move marks a reversal of former President Yoon Suk Yeol's 2022 decision to vacate the site. Public visits to Cheong Wa Dae will resume once President Lee's office completes the transition. The presidential office added that Seoul has secured a budget of 25.9 billion won ($18.9 million) for the relocation procedures.
