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

- Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lotte Chilsung Beverage
  Park Yoon-gi
  
  Park Yoon-gi is Vice Chairman and CEO of Lotte Chilsung Beverage. He previously served as Co-CEO alongside Shin Dong-bin, Chairman of Lotte Chilsung Beverage. Following Chairman Shin’s resignation upon the expiration of his term on March 25, 2025, Park has been serving as sole CEO. Born on January 8, 1970, he graduated from Dongbok High School and earned a degree in Business Administration from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. Park joined Lotte Chilsung Beverage in 1994 in the Sales Promotion Department. He went on to serve as Head of the Beverage Marketing Division and Head of the Corporate Strategy Division. In 2022, he was promoted to Vice President, completing his first term as CEO and beginning his second term. Despite a late-2025 executive reshuffle characterized by high-intensity reform measures, he successfully secured reappointment. At the time of his appointment as CEO, he drew attention as the first executive director-level (Senior Vice President) executive in Lotte Chilsung Beverage’s history to be appointed CEO, and as a relatively young leader in his 50s. He was promoted to executive director and, just one year after being elevated to managing director (Senior Managing Director), was appointed CEO alongside his promotion to executive director, surpassing more senior executives. He is recognized for his strong sales capabilities and is regarded as flexible and rational in his thinking and decision-making.
- CEO and President of HDC Hyundai Development Company
  Chung Kyung-ku
  
  Chung Kyung-ku is the CEO of HDC Hyundai Development Company. As a leading financial expert within HDC Group, he is focusing the organization’s capabilities on in-house projects, including the development of the Gwangun University Station area. He was born on June 18, 1965. He graduated from Seongdo High School in Busan and from the Department of Law at Seoul National University. He joined Shinhan Investment Corp. and worked there for nearly 20 years before moving to the finance team at Hyundai Development Company. In 2017, he was appointed CEO of HDC Asset Management. He served as head of the Management Planning Division at HDC Hyundai Development Company and as CEO of HDC Hyundai Development Company, and in 2022 worked as CEO of HDC, the group’s holding company. In 2024, he returned to HDC Hyundai Development Company and was nominated as CEO and President. In March 2025, he was appointed CEO and President. He has been devoting efforts to restoring the I’PARK brand and market trust by completing the reconstruction of the Gwangju Hwajeong I’PARK complex. #HDC #HyundaiDevelopmentCompany #ChungKyungku #KoreanCEO #RealEstateDevelopment #IPARK #GwangunStation #GwangjuHwajeongIPARK #ConstructionIndustry #CorporateLeadership
  NEWS
  - • HDC Hyundai Development Nears Seoul One Sellout, Chung Kyung-ku Targets Top Profitability
- President and CEO of NH NongHyup Capital
  Jang Jong-hwan
  
  Jang Jong-hwan is the President and CEO of NH NongHyup Capital. He aims to lead earnings growth by expanding investment finance and to elevate the company into the industry’s top seven in profitability. He was born on November 27, 1966, in Jecheon, Chungcheongbuk-do. He graduated from Jecheon High School in North Chungcheong Province and majored in psychology at Kangwon National University. He began his career at the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, where he mainly handled public relations work, and later took charge of customer support and member management consulting at NH NongHyup Life Insurance and the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation. At NH NongHyup Bank, he served as Head of the Financial Consumer Protection Division, and as Head of the Mutual Finance Business Support Division at the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation, before being appointed as CEO of NH Capital in January 2025. Having gained broad experience in sales operations and media public relations, he has a strong understanding of customer-centered services. He is focusing on expanding non-face-to-face services and accelerating the full-scale transition to artificial intelligence (AI). #NHNongHyupCapital #JangJonghwan #investmentfinance #financialservices #Koreafinance #AItransformation #nonfacetofaceservices #financialconsumerprotection #MutualFinance #CEOprofile
- Chairman of Danal
  Park Sung-chan
  
  Park Sung-chan is the Chairman of Danal. He has a vision of transforming the company into an integrated platform provider that encompasses all payment methods, including blockchain and stablecoins. He was born on September 16, 1963. After graduating from Soongsil High School, he entered the Department of Architecture at Korea University but did not complete his degree. He founded Heights Housing in 1983 and City Construction in 1992, working in the housing and construction industry for 15 years before establishing Danal in 1997 and opening a new market in mobile phone payment services. In 2011, taking responsibility for poor performance, he handed over the CEO position to Ryu Geung-seon, then CTO of Danal and now CEO of Kakao Mobility, and assumed the role of Chairman, focusing on expanding overseas markets. As a first-generation venture entrepreneur in Korea, he commercialized the world’s first mobile phone payment system, creating the market and establishing the company as a leading player in the field. He has served as Senior Vice Chairman of the Korea Venture Business Association and Chairman of the Korea Content Industry Association. #ParkSung-chan #Danal #MobilePayment #Blockchain #Stablecoin #Fintech #KoreaVenture #PaymentPlatform #DigitalFinance #Entrepreneur
- CEO of DB HiTek
  Cho Ki-seog
  
  Cho Ki-seog is the CEO of DB HiTek. He is expanding the company’s business areas into next-generation compound semiconductors and other fields. He is also accelerating efforts to expand system semiconductor production capacity. He was born on July 7, 1964. He graduated from Yeouido High School in Seoul and earned a bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical Engineering from Seoul National University. He received a master’s degree in Metallurgical Engineering from Seoul National University’s graduate school and completed a doctoral program before joining Dongbu Institute of Technology, the R&D organization of DB Group. He later served as head of DB HiTek’s Taiwan and China branches and as head of the Foundry Sales Division, and in 2023 he was appointed CEO of DB HiTek. He is a traditional “DB man” who has worked at DB Group for more than 30 years. He combines strong technical expertise with management capability. During his tenure as head of the sales division, he led DB HiTek to its first return to profitability.
- Mayor of Seoul
  Oh Se-hoon
  
  Oh Se-hoon is the Mayor of Seoul. Ahead of the June 3 local elections, he was mentioned as the most likely next Seoul mayor candidate from the conservative camp, but he took on legal risks after being indicted by a special prosecutor investigating Kim Keon-hee on charges of violating the Political Funds Act. He was born on January 4, 1961, in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. He graduated from Seoul Daeil High School, entered the College of Law and Political Science at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, and later transferred to the College of Law at Korea University. After passing the 26th Judicial Examination, he worked as an environmental lawyer and became widely known by hosting television programs. After joining politics at the suggestion of Lee Hoi-chang, then chairman of the Grand National Party, he ran in Seoul’s Gangnam Eul constituency and entered the National Assembly in 2000. He retired from politics after choosing not to run in the 17th general election, but later ran in the 2006 Seoul mayoral election and won. He succeeded in winning a second term as Seoul mayor, but after staking his position on a referendum related to free school meals in Seoul and the referendum failing, he resigned midway after just one year. He returned to office as Seoul mayor after winning the 2021 by-election, marking his comeback after 10 years. Throughout his political journey, he has shown the temperament of a gambler, making bold and decisive choices. Because of this, he has at times caused damage to his party or the conservative camp, leading to criticism that he can be reckless. #OhSehoon #SeoulMayor #SeoulPolitics #SouthKoreaPolitics #ConservativePolitics #LocalElections #PoliticalProfile #KoreanPoliticians #LegalRisk #PoliticalCareer
  NEWS
  - • Oh Se-hoon's Misstep? Seoul Reinstates Land Permits in Gangnam's Three Districts
- Chairman of Doosan Group and CEO of Doosan
  Park Jeong-won
  
  Park Jeong-won is the Chairman of Doosan Group. He also serves as CEO of Doosan, the group’s holding company. He is accelerating company-wide artificial intelligence transformation (AX) while investing in next-generation energy businesses such as small modular reactors (SMRs), gas turbines, and hydrogen fuel cells. He is also actively expanding into high-growth industries including semiconductors and battery materials and components. He was born on March 9, 1962, in Seoul, as the eldest son of the late Park Yong-gon, former Honorary Chairman of Doosan Group. He graduated from Daeil High School in Seoul and the Department of Business Administration at Korea University. He later earned a master’s degree in business administration from Boston University in the United States. After joining Doosan Industries’ New York office, he worked at Japan’s Kirin Brewery before rejoining Doosan Group as a section manager at Oriental Brewery. He served as Executive Vice President overseeing Doosan’s Management Headquarters, Vice President of Doosan Trading BG, and President of Doosan Trading BG. He later became Vice Chairman of Doosan Engineering & Construction and Doosan, before becoming the first among the fourth generation of the Doosan family to be appointed Chairman. As a registered executive director of Doosan, he jointly led the group with Park Yong-man, former Chairman of Doosan Group, before succeeding him as group chairman, ushering in the era of fourth-generation owner-led management at Doosan Group. He is known to be taciturn and down-to-earth. A well-known baseball enthusiast, he places strong emphasis on teamwork and talent development.
  NEWS
  - • 10 Years of Park Jeong-won at Doosan – Next in Line: Park Jin-won or Park Gee-won
  - • Park Jeong-won Utilizes Doosan Bobcat to Grow Doosan Robotics: Is This Setback the End?
- Chairman of the Korea Financial Investment Association
  Whang Song-youp
  
  Hwang Sung-yeop is the Chairman of the Korea Financial Investment Association. He was born on July 20, 1963, in Seoul. He graduated from Whimoon High School in Seoul and earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Seoul National University. He later received a master’s degree in Information Management from the Graduate School of Small and Medium Enterprises at Soongsil University, and a master’s degree in Finance from Illinois State University in the United States. He began his career at Daewoo Electronics. After one year, he moved to Shinyoung Securities, where he served as Head of the Asset Management Division, Head of the Institutional Business Division, Head of the Corporate Finance Division, and Vice President in charge of Executive Asset Management. In 2020, he was appointed CEO of Shinyoung Securities. In December 2025, he was elected Chairman of the Korea Financial Investment Association. He has worked in the investment industry for nearly 40 years. He drew attention as the first-ever Chairman to come from a background as the CEO of a small- to mid-sized securities firm. He also serves as Chairman of the Yeouido CEOs’ Council, a gathering of securities firm CEOs. #HwangSung-yeop #KoreaFinancialInvestmentAssociation #KOFIA #investmentindustry #securities #ShinyoungSecurities #financialmarkets #Koreafinance #capitalmarkets #financialleadership
- President of Seoul National University
  Ryu Hong-lim
  
  Ryu Hong-lim is the President of Seoul National University. He is seeking to build an industry-academia-government research innovation platform and create new models of social contribution. He was born on December 12, 1961, in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. He graduated from Cheongju High School in North Chungcheong Province and the Department of Political Science at Seoul National University. He earned a master’s degree in political science from the Graduate School of Seoul National University and received a Ph.D. from Rutgers University in the United States, where he specialized in Western political thought and modern political thought. He was appointed as a professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University in 1995. He served as a visiting scholar and visiting professor at the Harvard-Yenching Institute at Harvard University and at Rutgers University. He served as Editor-in-Chief of the Seoul National University Newspaper, Director of the University Archives, and Dean of the College of Social Sciences at Seoul National University, and was elected President in 2023. He has drawn attention by declaring the creation of AI standards to be shared with regional national universities and by extending the retirement age for endowed professors from 65 to up to 75. He served as President of the Korean Association for Political Thought. #RyuHonglim #SeoulNationalUniversity #SNUPresident #KoreanPoliticalThought #UniversityLeadership #AcademicInnovation #IndustryAcademiaCollaboration #AIStandards #HigherEducation #SocialContribution
- CEO of LG CNS
  Hyun Shin-gyoon
  
  Hyun Shin-gyoon is CEO of LG CNS. An IT technology expert, he has focused on strengthening LG CNS’s digital transformation (DX) competitiveness. He was born on February 25, 1965, in Seoul. He graduated from Seoul High School and Seoul National University’s Department of Computational Statistics, and earned a master’s degree in statistics from Seoul National University’s Graduate School. He completed a doctoral course in statistics at the University of Wisconsin in the United States. He began his career at Accenture Korea. He then worked at U.S. West Communications and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, before serving as Head of the Development Management Team at KB Kookmin Bank. After serving as Managing Director at Deloitte Consulting and Vice President at A.T. Kearney Korea, he joined LG Display as Executive Vice President and Head of the Business Innovation Group. He later moved to LG CNS, where he served as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), was promoted to Vice President, and led the DT Innovation Division and the D&A Division. In 2023, he was appointed CEO of LG CNS and promoted to President. He has set securing competitiveness in new businesses such as cloud and generative AI, and strengthening global AX and RX leadership, as his core tasks. He is seeking to expand the company’s growth base by accelerating global market expansion centered on overseas subsidiaries. #LGCNS #HyunShinGoon #DigitalTransformation #DX #Cloud #GenerativeAI #AX #RX #ITLeadership #GlobalExpansion
  NEWS
  - • LGCNS IPO Success Boosts M&A Funds, Hyun Shin-gyoon Speeds Up AI Expansion
  - • LGCNS Embarks on KRW 6 Trillion IPO, Hyun Shin-gyoon Leads Push into Global AI and Cloud Markets

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