Koo Yoon-cheol, former head of the office for government policy coordination and vice finance minister, has been appointed to be the next finance minister, the presidential office announced Sunday.
Koo, 60, is widely regarded as a veteran budget expert. After passing the civil service exam in 1988, he built his career primarily at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, serving in roles such as director general for policy coordination, director general for budget planning and head of the budget office.
In 2018, he was picked to be second vice finance minister under President Moon Jae-in, overseeing the national budget and fiscal policy for about a year and a half.
His most recent government post was leading the Office for Government Policy Coordination from May 2020 to June 2022.
Since leaving office, Koo has been a visiting professor at the department of economics at Seoul National University, his alma mater.
jwc@heraldcorp.com
