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

- President of Korea University
  Kim Dong-one
  
  Kim Dong-one is the President of Korea University. As the university marks its 120th anniversary, he is accelerating efforts to lay the foundation for a quantum jump forward. He seeks to define the university’s identity through realizing harmony between AI and HI (Human Intelligence). He was born on January 15, 1960, in Andong. He graduated from the Department of Business Administration at Korea University and earned both his master’s and doctoral degrees in industrial relations from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the United States. He served as a professor of business administration at the State University of New York before moving to Korea University as a professor of business administration. After serving as Director of the Office of General Affairs, Director of the Office of Planning and Budget, Dean of the Graduate School of Labor Studies, Dean of the College of Business Administration, and Dean of the Graduate School of Business, he was elected President in 2023. He served as President of the International Labour and Employment Relations Association (ILERA), becoming the third person in Asia and the first Korean to hold the position. He is devoting strong interest to building a future-oriented education and research platform. He holds the belief that participation in and research on social issues give a university its reason for existence. #KimDong-one #KoreaUniversity #UniversityPresident #AIandHI #HigherEducationLeadership #ILERA #IndustrialRelations #FutureEducation #AcademicLeadership #Andong
- CEO of Dongwon Systems
  Cho Jum-kun
  
  Cho Jum-kun is the CEO of Dongwon Systems. He is focusing on fostering the secondary battery materials business. He is also accelerating efforts to target the global eco-friendly packaging materials market. He was born on September 1, 1959, in Gangjin, Jeollanam-do. He graduated from Gangjin High School in Jeollanam-do and earned a degree in Financial Information Studies from Joosung University, now Chungbuk Health & Science University. He joined Dongwon Precision, the predecessor of Dongwon ENC, and served as plant manager of the Jincheon plant. He later moved to Dongwon Systems, where he served as Executive Vice President and head of the Packaging Division, Vice President and CEO of the Precision Division, and CEO of Daehan Aluminum Foil, a group affiliate. In 2014, he was promoted to President of Dongwon Systems and was appointed CEO. After overseeing all four business divisions, he is now specializing in and exclusively leading the Materials Division. He is a “Dongwon man” who has worked at Dongwon Group for more than 40 years. He has led the growth of Dongwon Systems by expanding its business areas through aggressive mergers and acquisitions. He is an expert in the packaging materials sector. He is credited with strengthening new growth engines by expanding beyond packaging materials into secondary batteries, thereby enhancing the future value of Dongwon Systems. #DongwonSystems #ChoJumkun #SecondaryBattery #BatteryMaterials #EcoFriendlyPackaging #MergersAndAcquisitions #DongwonGroup #PackagingExpert #CorporateLeadership #KoreanCEO
- Chairman of the Korea Federation of Banks
  Cho Yong-byoung
  
  Cho Yong-byoung is the Chairman of the Korea Federation of Banks. As calls for stronger internal controls in the banking sector grow louder, he is focusing on serving as a bridge between the banking industry and financial authorities. He was born on June 30, 1957, in Haman, South Gyeongsang Province. He graduated from Daejeon High School and the College of Law at Korea University. He completed an MBA program at the Graduate School of Economics at the University of Helsinki in Finland. He joined Shinhan Bank and served as Head of the Human Resources Department, Head of the Planning Department, and Manager of the New York Branch, before working as Executive Vice President in charge of Global Business. After serving as Head of the Retail Division and Deputy President of the Sales Promotion Group, he was appointed CEO of Shinhan BNP Paribas Asset Management in 2013. He served as President of Shinhan Bank and was appointed Chairman of Shinhan Financial Group in 2017. After completing two terms as Chairman of Shinhan Financial Group, he was elected Chairman of the Korea Federation of Banks in 2023. He demonstrates strong leadership along with a soft and communicative approach. #ChoYong-byoung #KoreaFederationofBanks #ShinhanFinancialGroup #ShinhanBank #bankingleadership #financialregulation #internalcontrol #Koreanfinance #MBA #globalbanking
- Vice Chairman and CEO of Youngone Holdings
  Sung Rae-eun
  
  Sung Rae-eun is Vice Chairman and CEO of Youngone Holdings. She runs the company under a father-daughter management system. She was born on November 17, 1978, as the second daughter of Sung Ki-hak, Chairman of Youngone Group, who founded Youngone Corporation. She went to the United States during middle school, graduated from the private high school Choate Rosemary Hall, and earned a degree in sociology from Stanford University in the United States. She joined Youngone Corporation and served as Director and Executive Vice President of the Global Compliance CSR Division. In 2016, she became CEO of Youngone Holdings, the holding company of Youngone Group, and emerged as a leading successor to management control among Chairman Sung Ki-hak’s three daughters. After serving as President in charge of sales and overall management, she has served as Vice Chairman since 2022. She is serving as Chairman of the Korea Fashion Industry Association. As a second-generation business leader, she has shown respect for and adherence to the management philosophy of her father, the founder. She published a book titled “Eternal Lessons,” which reflects the nature of notes from her management training. #SungRae-eun #YoungoneHoldings #YoungoneGroup #SungKi-hak #KoreaFashionIndustryAssociation #SecondGenerationLeadership #StanfordUniversity #ChoateRosemaryHall #CSRManagement #KoreanBusinessLeader
- Chairman and CEO of SPG
  Lee Jun-ho
  
  Lee Jun-ho is Chairman and CEO of SPG. He is restructuring the company’s business portfolio around high value-added components such as precision reducers and actuators for AI robots. He was born on June 1, 1960, as the son of Lee Hae-jong, the founder of Sungshin. He graduated from the Department of English at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and from the Department of Business Administration at the University of Illinois in the United States, and completed the MBA program at the George Washington University Graduate School of Business. He joined Sungshin, a small motor company founded by his father, and worked as a director. In 1991, he founded SPG, formerly Myungjin Electronics, and became independent. He later merged Sungshin with SPG and rose to become CEO of the integrated SPG. He aims to grow the company into a key player in the humanoid and AI robot technology ecosystem based on its precision robot reducer technology. #LeeJun-ho #SPG #precisionreducers #AIrobots #actuators #humanoidrobots #roboticsindustry #KoreanCEO #businessleadership #robottechnology
- President and Head of Planning at Hoban Group
  Kim Dae-heon
  
  Kim Dae-heon is President and Head of Planning at Hoban Group. Amid a slowdown in the housing market affecting its key affiliate Hoban Construction, he is working to secure new growth engines by expanding investments in the listed company Taihan Cable & Solution and in startups. He was born on October 25, 1988, as the eldest son among two sons and one daughter of Kim Sang-yeol, founder of Hoban Group, and Woo Hyun-hee, Chairwoman of the Taesung Cultural Foundation. He graduated from Seoul High School and majored in Golf Industry at Kyung Hee University. He completed an MBA program at Korea University Business School. After working at Hoban Construction Housing, he served at Hoban Construction as Executive Director of the Future Strategy Office and as Vice President in charge of the management division. He was in charge of the planning division responsible for discovering new business opportunities at Hoban Construction, and was promoted to President of Hoban Construction, opening the second-generation management era of Hoban Group. He is the largest shareholder of Hoban Construction and is also listed as an inside director.
- CEO of Shift Up
  Kim Hyung-tae
  
  Kim Hyung-tae is the CEO of Shift Up. He is focusing on expanding the company’s game portfolio. He was born on February 7, 1978. He dropped out of the Department of Visual Communication Design at the College of Arts, Chung-Ang University. He joined the game company Mantra as an industrial technical personnel and took on his first work as a professional illustrator. After working at Softmax, he served as art director (AD) at NCSoft and participated in the design work for “Blade & Soul.” After founding Shift Up in 2013, he entered the game business with “Destiny Child,” which he co-developed with Line Games, and went on to achieve box office success with “Goddess of Victory: Nikke” and “Stellar Blade.” He is focusing on developing upcoming titles such as Project Spirit and a sequel to Stellar Blade, as well as expanding existing games. #ShiftUp #KimHyungtae #GamingIndustry #GameDevelopment #DestinyChild #Nikke #StellarBlade #ProjectSpirit #KGame #GamePortfolio
  NEWS
  - • From ‘Too Sexy’ Illustrator to Global Game Disruptor: How Kim Hyung-tae and Shift Up Shook the Industry
- CEO of POSCO DX
  Sim Min-seok
  
  Sim Min-seok is the CEO of POSCO DX. He faces the task of supporting the group’s core strategy of “leaping forward as a future materials company” with digital technology. He was born in July 1968. He graduated from the Department of Electrical Engineering at Inha University and received a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Pennsylvania State University in the United States. He joined POSCO and worked in the EIC Technology Department. He later served as head of the Information Planning Group at POSCO’s Information Planning Office, head of the Smart EIC Business Office at POSCO ICT, and head of the Digital Innovation Office at POSCO’s Management Support Division. In January 2025, he was appointed CEO of POSCO DX. He is regarded as a “hands-on technology expert” who has led POSCO Group’s digital transformation (DX) efforts on the ground. In his first year in office, he must break away from reliance on internal transactions, which led to a decline in performance. #POSCODX #SimMinseok #POSCOGroup #DigitalTransformation #DXStrategy #FutureMaterials #KoreanCEO #TechLeadership #CorporateInnovation #InternalTransactions
- CEO of Mirae Asset Venture Investment
  Kim Eung-suk
  
  Kim Eung-suk is Vice Chairman and CEO of Mirae Asset Venture Investment. He is working to continuously expand investment opportunities in global innovative companies such as SpaceX by combining Mirae Asset Group's global network with the capabilities of its affiliates. He was born on July 7, 1968. He joined LG Electronics and worked at the Multimedia Research Institute and the Technical Marketing Team at LG Semicon. He entered the investment industry after moving to Jang Eun Venture Capital and later joined Mirae Asset Capital as an investment officer in the Investment Division. He moved to Mirae Asset Venture Investment, where he served as a director, and in 2005 he was appointed CEO (Executive Vice President) of Mirae Asset Venture Investment. He was subsequently promoted through the ranks to Executive Vice President, then President, and ultimately Vice Chairman, leading the company as CEO for over 20 years. As the longest-serving CEO in the industry, he acts as the senior figure overseeing Mirae Asset Group's venture capital business. In line with the government's policy to foster the artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem, he is interested in pioneering investments in AI startups. #MiraeAsset #VentureCapital #KimEungsuk #AIinvestment #StartupInvestment #GlobalInvestment #SpaceX #VCindustry #KoreaFinance #ArtificialIntelligence
- President and CEO of Sh Suhyup Bank
  Shin Hak-gi
  
  Hak-gi Shin is the President and CEO of Sh Suhyup Bank. He is focusing on strengthening the bank’s digital competitiveness and expanding its non-banking business portfolio, while also ensuring capital adequacy. He was born on January 20, 1968, in Changnyeong, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea. He graduated from Yeongsan High School in Gyeongsangnam-do and earned a bachelor’s degree in International Trade from Dong-A University. He began his career at the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives (Suhyup), where he served as Head of the Corporate Customer Strategy Team in the Corporate Banking Department, Branch Manager of the Ingye-dong Branch, Head of the Customer Support Department, and Head of the Risk Management Department. After Sh Suhyup Bank was separated from the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives, he served as Head of the Southern Regional Headquarters of Suhyup Bank and later as Senior Executive Vice President of the Management Strategy Group. In 2024, he was appointed President and CEO of Sh Suhyup Bank. Having worked across strategy, sales, risk management, finance, and planning, he is regarded as having a comprehensive understanding of Suhyup Bank’s overall operations.

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