In the future, any sale of government assets worth more than 30 billion KRW must be reported in advance to the relevant National Assembly committee. Additionally, the sale of shares in public institutions held by the government or public agencies requires prior consent from the National Assembly, and discount sales compared to the appraised value are fundamentally prohibited. Furthermore, each government department must establish a specialized review body centered on external experts for the sale of government assets.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced that it has prepared institutional improvement measures to prevent indiscriminate privatization of government assets and to address issues raised in recent audits, National Assembly sessions, and media reports regarding the undervalued sale of government assets and the opacity of the sale process. The ministry plans to overhaul the management system for the sale of government assets. Each department (agency) will establish a specialized review body centered on external experts to strengthen the review of the selection of sale targets and the appropriateness of prices.
The ministry aims to fundamentally block controversies over undervalued sales. Discount sales compared to the appraised value are fundamentally prohibited, and even if a discount sale is unavoidable, it must go through strict procedures such as prior approval from the National Property Policy Review Committee. Additionally, to enhance the reliability of appraisals of government assets, the issuance of a review certificate from the Korea Association of Property Appraisers is mandatory for high-value appraisals exceeding 10 billion KRW, and the conditions for private sales stipulated in the National Property Act will be reasonably revised.
The ministry also decided that the privatization of public institutions will be pursued only after sufficient discussion in the National Assembly. When selling shares in public institutions held by the government or public agencies, a prior consent procedure from the relevant National Assembly committee will be established to allow the National Assembly to review privatization in advance. Additionally, the ministry plans to significantly expand the disclosure of information related to sales. When a decision is made to sell government assets, bidding information will be immediately disclosed on the website (Onbid), and after the sale, the location, price, and reason for the sale of the sold assets will be transparently disclosed to ensure the public’s right to know and strengthen external control.