KoreaWho - Biographical and news service about individuals who have a significant impact on the Korean economy

- President of Seoul St. Mary's Hospital of The Catholic University of Korea.
  Lee Ji-youl
  
  Lee Ji-youl is the President of Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital of The Catholic University of Korea. He is focusing on transforming the hospital into a research-driven medical institution through healthcare innovation and is leading its digital transformation initiatives. He was born in 1964. He graduated from the College of Medicine at The Catholic University of Korea. He earned both his master’s and doctoral degrees in medicine from The Catholic University of Korea Graduate School. He was appointed as a professor in the Department of Urology at The Catholic University of Korea. He has served as Director of Outpatient Services at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Director of the Catholic Prostate Research Institute, Director of the Catholic Cancer Research Institute, Head of the Human Biobank at the Institute of Biomedical Industry, and Director of the Smart Hospital. He is recognized as a leading authority in the field of urologic cancers and is regarded as one of the pioneers who advanced innovative robotic surgery techniques. He has served as President of the Asia-Pacific Uro-Oncology Society, President of the Asian Pacific Prostate Society, and President of the Korean Prostate Society.
- Kwon Gi-beom is the chairman of Dongkook Pharmaceutical.
  Kwon Gi-beom
  
  Kwon Gi-beom is the chairman of Dongkook Pharmaceutical. He is approaching the company’s first-ever KRW 1 trillion (US$ 719.4 million) in revenue by expanding the brand competitiveness of its over-the-counter drug business into the cosmetics sector. He was born on March 23, 1967, as the eldest son among two sons and two daughters of Kwon Dong-il, the late former chairman and founder of Dongkook Pharmaceutical. He graduated from Yongsan High School in Seoul and Yonsei University’s Department of Social Welfare. He completed an MBA program at the University of Denver’s business school in the United States. He joined Dongkook Pharmaceutical. In 2002, he became vice president and was appointed CEO at the young age of 34. With the vision of becoming a total healthcare group, he is pursuing balanced growth in prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, medical devices, cosmetics and health functional foods. He is serving as chairman of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association. #KwonGibeom #DongkookPharmaceutical #pharmaceuticals #healthcare #cosmetics #OTCdrugs #medicaldevices #healthfoods #KoreaPharmaceuticalBioPharmaManufacturersAssociation #CEO
- Chairman of Korea Development Bank
  Park Sang-jin
  
  Park Sang-jin is Chairman of Korea Development Bank. He is working to expand the role of policy financial institutions amid the Lee Jae-myung government’s push for a shift toward productive finance. He was born on March 24, 1962. He graduated from Jeonju High School in North Jeolla Province and Chung-Ang University’s Department of Law. He joined Korea Development Bank in 1990 and handled restructuring, bond management, and court receivership in dedicated task forces for Kia Group, Daewoo Heavy Industries, and Daewoo Motor. In the legal affairs office, he worked as head of the compliance monitoring team and head of the litigation team, and supported the transition to a holding company structure at the privatization task force. He served as head of the compliance monitoring team at KDB Financial Group and as head of KDB’s legal affairs office and compliance officer. After leaving KDB, where he had worked for 30 years, he served as vice president of Seobu Metropolitan Railway before taking office as Chairman of Korea Development Bank in September 2025. He is a policy finance expert well versed in corporate restructuring and financial law. He is the first KDB chairman to come from inside the bank. He faces tasks including the sale of HMM and KDB Life Insurance and the operation of the advanced strategic industries fund. #ParkSangjin #KoreaDevelopmentBank #KDB #policyfinance #productivefinance #LeeJaemyunggovernment #corporaterestructuring #financiallaw #HMM #KDBLifeInsurance
- CEO of Korea Railroad Corporation
  Kim Tae-seung
  
  Kim Tae-seung is the CEO of Korea Railroad Corporation. He faces the tasks of integrating high-speed rail, strengthening safety, and improving finances. He was born on October 29, 1961, in Gochang, North Jeolla Province. He graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in economics and received a master’s degree and a doctorate in economics from Seoul National University’s graduate school. He began his career in the Transportation Research Office at the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements. He worked as a policy secretary at the National Assembly Secretariat. He served as a senior researcher at the SOC Research Center of the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements and as a senior research fellow at the Centre for Transportation Studies at the University of British Columbia in Canada. He headed the Northeast Asia, Logistics and Transportation Economics Research Center at the Korea Transport Institute and served as vice president of the Gyeonggi Research Institute. He later became a professor in the Asia Pacific School of Logistics at Inha University’s College of Business Administration. In February 2026, he was finally selected through a public recruitment process for the position of CEO of Korea Railroad Corporation. #KimTae-seung #KoreaRailroadCorporation #KORAIL #highspeedrail #railwaysafety #financialimprovement #transportationpolicy #railintegration #logistics #publiccorporation
- President and CEO of ISU Specialty Chemical
  Lyu Seung-ho
  
  Lyu Seung-ho is President and CEO of ISU Specialty Chemical. He is focusing on establishing commercial production facilities for lithium sulfide (Li2S), a key material for all-solid-state batteries, and securing a leading position in the global supply chain. He is also concentrating on expanding investment in TDM, the company’s existing flagship product. He was born on April 1, 1963. He graduated from Kyungnam High School in Busan and earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Seoul National University. He also received a master’s degree in chemical engineering from the graduate school of Seoul National University. After joining ISU, he worked as head of the Strategic Planning Team and executive in charge of management planning. He later served as head of the Business Planning Division at ISU Abxis before being appointed CEO of ISU Abxis in 2013. He moved to ISU Chemical, where he served as head of the Safety Technology Division and plant manager, and was appointed CEO in 2016. In 2023, he was selected as President and CEO of ISU Specialty Chemical, which was launched through a spin-off from ISU Chemical. He is regarded as an expert in fine chemicals. He has served as a full member of the National Academy of Engineering of Korea and as senior vice chairman of the Korean Institute of Chemical Engineers. #ISUSpecialtyChemical #LyuSeungho #AllSolidStateBattery #LithiumSulfide #Li2S #BatteryMaterials #FineChemicals #ISUChemical #TDM #ChemicalEngineering
- Chairman of Orion Group.
  Tam Chul-gon
  
  Tam Chul-gon is Chairman of Orion Group. He is pursuing a transformation into a global food and healthcare company by focusing on the food business while linking it with new businesses such as biotechnology. In 2026, he accelerated the group’s third-generation succession process by promoting his eldest son, Tam Seo-won, to Group Executive Vice President. He was born on June 6, 1955, in Daegu, North Gyeongsang Province, as the son of a Taiwanese-Chinese family that operated a traditional Korean medicine clinic. After attending Korea Kent Foreign School in Seoul during middle school, he moved to the United States and studied business administration at George Washington University. He married Lee Hwa-kyung, Vice Chairman of Orion Group and the second daughter of Lee Yang-gu, the founder of Tongyang Group. He began his career as a manager in the materials department of Tongyang Cement, a Tongyang Group affiliate. After moving to Tongyang Confectionery, he was promoted through the ranks of executive director, senior executive vice president, and executive vice president. Following the death of founder Lee Yang-gu, he inherited management control and became CEO and President of Tongyang Confectionery in 1989. After becoming Group Vice Chairman, he separated Tongyang Confectionery from Tongyang Group in 2001, changed the company’s name to Orion, and became Chairman and CEO. In 2013, he and his wife Lee Hwa-kyung stepped down from their positions as registered directors, but he has continued to oversee the group’s management as Chairman. Opinions on him are divided. He is credited with pioneering the Chinese market through a localized strategy, but he is also viewed as a figure whose legal issues and owner-related risks have placed a considerable burden on the company. #Orion #TamChulGon #OrionGroup #FoodIndustry #HealthcareBusiness #Biotechnology #ChinaMarket #CorporateSuccession #KoreanBusiness #ChairmanProfile
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- CEO of GS P&L
  Park Min-su
  
  Park Min-su is CEO of GS P&L. He faces the task of “making full-fledged results visible” in the second year since the company’s launch. He was born in September 1970. He graduated from Sogang University with a degree in economics. He worked at GS Home Shopping as head of the investment management division. He moved to GS Retail, where he served as head of the management support division, and later worked at GS Networks as head of the management support group. In March 2026, he was selected as CEO of GS P&L. He contributed to improving business support capabilities and streamlining financial structures at GS Group’s major retail and logistics affiliates. #ParkMinsu #GSPNL #GSGroup #CEO #retail #logistics #GSHomeShopping #GSRetail #GSNetworks #businessmanagement
- Chairman and CEO of Mezzion
  Park Dong-hyun
  
  Park Dong-hyun is chairman and CEO of Mezzion. He faces the urgent task of securing financial stability amid concerns over capital impairment. He was born on August 15, 1956. He graduated from Yale University in the United States with a degree in economics and earned a master’s degree in accounting from New York University’s business school. He completed an MBA program at Stanford Graduate School of Business. He worked as a manager in the corporate audit division of KPMG in the United States and as a director in Merrill Lynch’s investment banking group. After returning to Korea, he founded Feist Investment and advised on corporate mergers and acquisitions. After serving as an outside director of Dong-A Pharmaceutical, he was recruited in 2002 as CEO of Dong-A PharmTech, Dong-A Pharmaceutical’s new drug development subsidiary. After increasing his stake, he reorganized the company into Mezzion in 2013 and became chairman and CEO. He transformed himself from a finance and corporate M&A expert from Wall Street in New York into the head of a drug development company. He is focusing his capabilities on switching the indication of udenafil, developed as an erectile dysfunction treatment, to develop it as a treatment for Fontan patients. #ParkDonghyun #Mezzion #CEO #drugdevelopment #udenafil #Fontanpatients #DongAPharmTech #DongAPharmaceutical #WallStreet #biopharmaceuticals
- President and CEO of SNT Dynamics
  Park Jae-seok
  
  Park Jae-seok is CEO of SNT Dynamics. He is focusing on technological independence in core defense components and expanding the company’s portfolio in precision machinery and electronic control modules. He is also accelerating efforts to enter global markets, including expanding overseas sales. He was born on November 27, 1959, in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province. He graduated from Baemoon High School in Seoul and earned a degree in German Language and Literature from Yonsei University. At Daewoo Group, he was in charge of quality control for truck manufacturing. He later moved to GC Biopharma, where he worked as a director in charge of public relations. After joining Tongil Heavy Industries, now SNT Dynamics, as executive vice president of the Planning and Coordination Office, he was appointed CEO in 2005. After serving as CEO of SNT Brake, he was selected as CEO of SNT Holdings. In 2021, he returned to SNT Dynamics as CEO and president. He has led the overall defense, machinery and parts businesses while working across SNT Holdings affiliates. #ParkJae-seok #SNTDynamics #SNTGroup #defenseindustry #precisionmachinery #electroniccontrol #defensecomponents #globalmarket #technologyindependence #Koreabusiness
- Vice Chairman and CEO of Foosung.
  Kim Yong-min
  
  Kim Yong-min is Vice Chairman and CEO of Foosung. He is strengthening the fundamentals of the semiconductor specialty gas business while leading the company's diversification into future growth sectors such as secondary battery materials. He was born on September 14, 1976, as the son of Kim Keun-soo, Chairman of Foosung Group. He graduated from the University of Washington and completed an MBA program at Cornell University’s business school. He joined Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance and worked at its New Jersey branch office. He later joined Foosung and underwent management training within the company. In 2012, he was appointed President and CEO of Foosung. He turned the struggling secondary battery materials division profitable by acquiring U.S.-based electrolyte company Nobellite and securing four large-scale long-term supply contracts with local Chinese companies. He has been leading the company’s response to global supply chain restructuring while spearheading the discovery and growth of new business engines. Chung Ju-yung, the founder of Hyundai Group, is his great-uncle on his mother’s side. #Foosung #KimYongmin #SemiconductorGas #SpecialtyGas #BatteryMaterials #SecondaryBattery #SupplyChain #Nobellite #FoosungGroup #HyundaiGroup

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