President Park Geun-hye nominated senior public servant Shin Je-yoon as the nation’s top financial regulator over the weekend.

Should Shin garner approval from the National Assembly, he will take office as the first chairman of the Financial Services Commission under the new government ― a vacant seat in the wake of Kim Seok-dong’s resignation on Feb. 25.

The 54-year-old nominee, who mostly worked for the Finance Ministry over the past 30 years, has been evaluated as a senior public official with wide experience in the international finance sector.

He played a significant role in the finance segment of negotiations for the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement during the Roh Moo-hyun administration.

As he also served the FSC as vice chairman during the Lee Myung-bak administration, market observers predict he will demonstrate outstanding performance in dealing with pressing issues such as household debt and foreign exchange supervision.

In a meeting with reporters after the nomination by the presidential office, Shin stressed that “patience” is important in resolving the household debt woes.

His remarks hint at future policies of the FSC toward a “soft landing” of the nation’s record-high consumer debt via cautious regulatory approaches.

The nominee, however, may have to go through a tough confirmation hearing from lawmakers due to his involvement in the Lone Star Funds scandal, observers predict.

Along with former FSC chairman Kim Seok-dong and former Finance Ministry director general Byun Yang-ho, Shin was among several key members engaging in the government’s handing over Korea Exchange Bank to the U.S.-based Lone Star for allegedly lower-than-market prices in 2003.

Over the past 10 years, a group of lawmakers and civic groups has continued to claim that “back then policymakers endorsed the deal although Lone Star was an ineligible investor to take over a Korean financial company under the laws.”

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)