President Park Geun-hye has named former Health Minister Choi Kwang to head the National Pension Service, the country’s pension fund operator, officials said Friday.

Choi, 66, replaces outgoing chairman Jun Kwang-woo who led the public pension service since 2009.

Choi is known as one of the country’s leading free market economists who has been calling for public policies to be formulated under market-based principles. He served as health minister for the Kim Young-sam administration from 1997 to 1998. 

“(The president) picked Choi because he is well-qualified to spearhead the planned pension reform and develop advanced fund management, an official at the ministry said, adding that he was one of the three candidates recommended to the president.

“With his wide range of expertise and knowledge ranging from economy to management, (the ministry) expects Choi to play a leading role in fund management and institutional changes in the public pension service,” the official said. The pension operator is ranked fourth in the world in terms of the fund size. It currently manages about 410 trillion won in combined assets, NPS officials said.

Born in Namhae, South Gyeongsang Province, Choi graduated from Seoul National University with a major in management and studied public administration at graduate school of University of Wisconsin. He received a Ph.D. from Maryland University in economics. Since 1985, Choi taught economics at Hankuk University for Foreign Studies and retired late last year.

Chief Presidential Secretary Heo Tae-yeol and Choi are alumni of Busan High School and the graduate school of the University of Wisconsin.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)