Woori Financial Group chairman Lee Pal-seung said the group would seek mergers and acquisitions in the non-banking sector and the state-controlled group’s privatization concurrently.

“Though it (the non-banking unit M&A) may be desirable after we complete the privatization, the best timing for M&As is now,” Lee told reporters Friday.

Lee reiterated his resolution to take over at least one financial company in the non-banking sector such as insurance and credit card, as he said that the “financial industry is an M&A-oriented one. There is a limit with only organic growth.”

While the Woori chief said the group gave up participating in the bidding for Tong Yang Life, citing estimated prices, he said, “We will target any insurance firm in the M&A market.”

He also said the group would push for expansion of other non-banking units, including credit card and capital services, via both M&As and organic growth.

Concerning the government’s effort to sell shares of taxpayers’ money-injected Woori Financial, he said “continuous effort will be made.”

But he said the methods of privatization will be determined by Woori’s majority shareholder ― the state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp.

Policymakers held their first official meeting of this year in late January to revitalize the government’s stalled project to privatize Woori Financial.

Newly formed members of the Public Fund Oversight Committee had a workshop on the Woori sale plan this month.

The six members of the PFOC, under the wing of the Financial Services Commission, discussed a variety of scenarios and preliminary steps before they unveil a fresh sale plan.

This marked the first time that the oversight committee officially reviews the Woori sale project since the new members were appointed to the post in September 2011.

Over the past few years, financial authorities including the FSC have struggled in realizing the project to recoup taxpayers’ money by selling the government’s stake in Woori.

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