The presidential chief of staff stepped down just days after a Cabinet reshuffle, following sharp criticism over his role in leveraged ETFs and housing policies.
Kim Yong-beom attends a policy meeting at the Blue House on Aug. 21.YONHAP
President Lee Jae Myung accepted the resignation of presidential chief of staff for policy Kim Yong-beom on Tuesday, two days after announcing a Cabinet reshuffle that replaced ministers overseeing key economic areas.
Kim is the first senior presidential aide at the chief-of-staff level to be replaced since the Lee administration took office in June 2025.
“Kim offered his resignation yesterday,” presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said at a briefing Tuesday morning. “President Lee accepted his resignation today.”
The presidential office had until recently said it was not considering replacing Kim, but announced his resignation and Lee’s acceptance of it ahead of Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting. Kim also did not attend the National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Accounts’ review of the previous year’s spending by noneconomic ministries on Monday, citing an “urgent budget-related meeting.”
Kim was appointed presidential chief of staff for policy on June 6, 2025, three days after the Lee administration took office. He was credited with successfully steering Korea through tariff negotiations with the United States, one of the administration’s key challenges early in its term.
He also played a central role in policies to bolster the stock market, tackle housing issues and foster future industries through the so-called three megaprojects. The megaprojects focus on semiconductors, physical AI and data centers, with major investments planned across regions outside the Seoul metropolitan area.
Presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung delivers a briefing on presidential chief of staff for policy Kim Yong-beom’s resignation on Sept. 1.JOINT PRESS CORPS
Calls for Kim’s resignation or dismissal began to grow after single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETF) targeting Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were introduced in late May. The Kospi plummeted after their introduction, with critics saying the ETFs heightened market volatility.
Kim came under particular scrutiny after saying in a media interview in January that he had personally ordered a review for introducing such products.
“I asked the Financial Services Commission why we couldn’t allow something here that is already allowed on Nasdaq, and instructed the relevant policy department to look into it,” Kim said at the time.
A smartphone stock trading app shows sharp swings in a single-stock leveraged product linked to SK hynix on July 15.NEWS1
Criticism was also directed at Kim over the government’s housing policies. A plan to apply different comprehensive real estate tax deductions even to owners of just one home, depending on whether they actually live in the property, drew particular criticism.
The presidential office had initially leaned toward keeping Kim despite the criticism.
“Controversies naturally arise in the process of pursuing policies and immediately dismissing someone simply because the opposition criticizes them does not align with President Lee’s philosophy,” a source from the ruling bloc said late last month.
The lack of a clear alternative to Kim was also cited as a reason for keeping him in the post.
But the tables turned as Lee’s approval ratings began to slide.
Lee’s approval rating fell to 42 percent in a Gallup Korea survey conducted from Aug. 25 to 27. A separate Realmeter survey conducted from Aug. 24 to 28 put his approval rating at 38.9 percent, marking the first time it had fallen into the 30-percent range since he took office.
“If the president’s approval rating falls, someone has to take responsibility regardless of how hard they have worked until now,” another source from the ruling bloc said.
Controversies surrounding Kim’s public remarks were also cited as a factor in his departure.
Kim Yong-beom, presidential chief of staff for policy, speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the Blue House on Aug. 25.NEWS1
He wrote that “high interest rates, high inflation and a weak won are the price of success,” in a Facebook post on May 26. He also said, “The reason our country has such high volatility is that retail investors invest very dynamically and the two companies [Samsung Electronics and SK hynix] account for a very large share of the market” at a press conference in São Paulo on July 28.
PPP floor spokesperson Choi Eun-seok criticized Kim's posts, by saying “He rattles markets and causes social controversy.”
Kim’s retention in Sunday’s Cabinet reshuffle was also seen to diminish the impact of the reshuffle, adding to the pressure on him to step down.
PPP leaders, including party leader Jang Dong-hyeok, stepped up their attacks immediately afterward, arguing that “presidential chief of staff for policy Kim Yong-beom, whom the public has demanded be removed, was left untouched.”
Kim Yong-beom, left, speaks with presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik during a meeting in Ulsan on May 13.YONHAP
Even within the pro-Lee faction of the Democratic Party (DP), calls for Kim’s dismissal had emerged before the reshuffle.
“The single-stock leveraged ETFs were introduced before they were properly prepared and dealt an enormous shock to the stock market,” DP lawmaker Kim Young-jin said. “There needs to be some degree of accountability. It would not be appropriate to simply let this pass.”
The PPP further sharpened its criticism following news of Kim’s resignation Tuesday.
“It is late, but it is fortunate that the public and the opposition's demands for his dismissal were finally accepted,” PPP floor leader Jeong Jeom-sig said. “This must not end as a personnel change merely for show, but lead to a substantive shift in policy direction.”
Jeong also turned his criticism to Lee, saying, “In some respects, the chief of staff for policy has shouldered responsibility that the president himself should bear.”
“Kim’s resignation amounts to an admission that the Cabinet reshuffle failed,” Jeong added.
The PPP plans to submit a request for a parliamentary investigation into the single-stock leveraged ETFs that Kim pushed for.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
