Game theorist and financial economist Shin Hyun-Song will be the new governor of South Korea’s central bank, the country’s president has announced.

Shin has spent the last 12 years as a senior economics advisor to the Bank for International Settlements, a forum for the world’s central banks, making him one of South Korea’s most distinguished economists.

He is credited with popularising a subfield of game theory that assumes imperfect information, leading to a unique equilibrium of supply and demand, as opposed to the multiple equilibria possible under models with complete information.

He has also argued for greater asset regulation and warned of excessive leverage prior to the 2008 financial crisis.

“In a situation where uncertainty in the global economy has increased due to the Middle East crisis, [Shin] is the right person to simultaneously achieve the monetary policy goals of price stability and national economic growth,” said Lee Kyu-Yeon of South Korea’s presidential office.

Shin faces a parliamentary confirmation hearing before leading his first policy meeting in May. South Korea’s National Assembly lacks the authority to veto his appointment, making the hearing more of an opportunity to scrutinise his plans for the role than a genuine obstacle to his appointment.

South Korea is currently facing high inflation and a weak currency, prompting Dutch bank ING to expect Shin to take a hawkish stance on the base rate. The bank says it expects a rate rise in July at the latest, with May or June possible if the conflict in the Middle East intensifies.

In a statement on the day of the announcement, Shin said: "I will consider how to operate a balanced monetary policy that takes into account prices, growth, and financial stability."

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