[THE INVESTOR] The National Pension Service, the nation’s largest institutional investor, said on July 17 its Chief Investment Officer Kang Myeon-wook has resigned citing personal reasons.

His resignation comes seven months before his two-year term expires. 

Kang, former CEO of Meritz Asset Management, took office in February as the state-run pension fund’s CIO who oversees the overall investment strategy for 578 trillion won (US$530 billion) funds.

Industry watchers say his early departure could signal NPS’ possible shift in investment strategy. Kang has been criticized for his “passive” investment style that follows movements of key indexes rather than taking risks on undervalued stocks.

By Park Ga-young (gypark@heraldcorp.com)