By Cynthia Kim

SEOUL (Reuters). South Korea’s president announced Wednesday that Rhee Changyong has been appointed as the new chief of its central bank. Rhee is a former technocrat from the International Monetary Fund.

The presidential office reported that President Moon Jaein, the outgoing president, had talked about the nomination with Yoon Suk Suk-yeol (conservative President-elect), who will assume his position in May for a 5-year term.

Rhee will assume the reins of the bank, with it widely believed that Rhee will continue the aggressive cycle in interest rate increases to reduce consumer inflation. This is a trend which has been running close to a decade.

He succeeds Governor Lee Juyeol, whose term is up March 31.

Although his nomination is not subject to parliamentary approval Rhee will still be subject to questioning from legislators about his economic knowledge and ethics.

Members of the National Assembly regularly question those who have been selected as high-ranking members in hearings. These inquiries used to focus on many personal topics, including the nominee’s tax records and property transaction records.

As inflationary pressures increase amid higher import prices and continued supply chain disruptions, the Bank of Korea has indicated it will likely raise interest rates more quickly.

Rhee, currently director of Asia and Pacific Department, at IMF oversees its lending operations and surveillance across Asia Pacific.

Rhee, who joined the IMF as the chief economist in the ADB in 2014, worked closely alongside finance minister officials and was Sherpa at South Korea’s G-20 Presidential Committee’s summit in 2010.