State-run financial companies under the management jurisdiction of the Financial Services Commission are reemerging as firms that offer the best-paying jobs of any industry.

Employees at nine public financial companies of the regulatory body received an annual monthly salary of some 87 million won ($79,500) on average last year, more than the average 70 million won at Samsung Electronics, Korea’s biggest company listed on the stock market, according to a public disclosure filing.

The nine are Korea Technology Finance Corp, Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, Korea Deposit Insurance Corp, Koscom, Korea Securities Depository, Korea Asset Management Corp, Korea Finance Corp and Korea Housing Finance Corp.

Their average annual salary even exceeded that of the 10 biggest listed companies, including Hyundai Motor, POSCO and the Korea Electric Power Corporation.

The Korea Exchange, the country’s only stock market operator, paid the highest annual salary among the financial regulator’s nine companies at about 114 million won on average, and 62 percent more than that of Samsung Electronics.

Data also showed that employees of the KRX continuously worked for an average of 17 years, compared to nine years at Samsung Electronics.

Employees of the nine public financial companies also received more than those of eight private companies, including Samsung Life Insurance, Shinhan Bank and Kookmin Bank.

Employees’ paychecks at public financial companies were cut in the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2008 amid mounting criticism against the financial industry executives of their greed stemming from high bonuses and salaries.

The former administration also urged executives of public firms to lower their salaries as a means to sustain job creation.

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)