Complaint submitted to Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency via public petition portal
Nominee couple's securities holdings rose from 12.43 million won to 157.35 million won in one year
Probe sought into dividend income separate taxation legislation and blind trust compliance
A former Seoul city council member has filed a criminal complaint with police against Lee So-young, the nominee for minister of SMEs and Startups, alleging a potential conflict of interest between her stock investments and her legislative push for separate taxation of dividend income.
Lee Jong-bae, the former council member, said Monday he had submitted a complaint against the nominee to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency through the public petition portal on Sunday, accusing her of violating the Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest of Public Officials and the Public Officials Ethics Act.
The complaint stems from concerns raised by the opposition party that the period during which the nominee and her spouse saw a sharp increase in their securities holdings coincided with her efforts to advance a bill on separate taxation of dividend income.
An analysis of the nominee's public asset disclosure by Rep. Choi Su-jin of the People Power Party, a member of the National Assembly's Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee, found that the balance of securities accounts held in the couple's names surged roughly 12.7-fold — from 12.43 million won ($9,170) at the end of 2024 to 157.35 million won at the end of 2025.
In April last year, the nominee introduced a bill to amend the Income Tax Act that would allow dividend income from listed companies with a dividend payout ratio of at least 35 percent to be taxed separately at a maximum rate of 27.5 percent, rather than being subject to comprehensive taxation. In August of that year, she was assigned to the National Assembly's Strategy and Finance Committee, which handles relevant tax legislation. An amended version of the bill, adjusted through negotiations between the ruling and opposition parties, passed the National Assembly in December of that year.
In the complaint, Lee Jong-bae said investigators should determine whether the nominee used non-public information obtained during the legislative process to purchase stocks that stood to benefit from the bill, and whether she passed such information to her spouse.
The Act on the Prevention of Conflicts of Interest of Public Officials prohibits public officials from using confidential information or non-public information from their agencies, obtained in the course of their duties, to gain financial benefits for themselves or a third party. Lee Jong-bae said investigators should examine the specific stocks held by the couple, the timing of their purchases and the flow of funds to determine whether the law was violated.
The complaint also raises the question of whether the nominee properly fulfilled her obligation to place her stocks in a blind trust. Lee Jong-bae called on investigators to look into whether she reported the job-relatedness of her stock holdings or requested a review when she served on the Strategy and Finance Committee, and whether she took the necessary steps if those holdings were subject to a blind trust requirement.
Rep. Choi's office had earlier called for verification of whether the nominee properly filed a conflict-of-interest disclosure with the National Assembly and requested a job-relatedness review for a blind trust when she was assigned to the committee, demanding the submission of securities account transaction records and the timing of purchases by stock.
Lee Jong-bae said that if the nominee introduced a dividend income tax bill and participated in its deliberation on the relevant standing committee while in a position to profit financially from stock investments, it could raise serious questions about the moral integrity and impartiality expected of a minister nominee.
He added that whether criminal liability exists must be determined through an investigation, but said the confirmation hearing should thoroughly scrutinize the circumstances behind the increase in her assets, the specific stocks held, whether information obtained during the legislative process was used, and whether procedures to resolve conflicts of interest were followed.
7toy7@heraldcorp.com
