The founder of Soulbrain, Chairman Jeong Ji-wan's daughter, Vice President Jeong Mun-joo, has been appointed as a co-CEO. With Vice President Jeong taking on the role of co-CEO, there are expectations for a quicker succession.
According to the industry on the 17th, Soulbrain Holdings announced last week that it had appointed Vice President Jeong Mun-joo, head of strategic planning, as co-CEO during a board meeting. Chairman Jeong stepped down from the representative position of the holding company in 2022 but has maintained the chairmanship of the board. Chairman Jeong holds 55.89% equity in the holding company, while Co-CEO Jeong holds 1.09% equity.
Co-CEO Jeong graduated from Parsons School of Design in the United States and worked at KOLON before joining in 2021 as the managing director of the Vision Strategy Division. She was promoted to executive director in 2023 and to vice president in 2024. Currently, Co-CEO Jeong does not hold any position at Soulbrain. Since 2021, Soulbrain has been led by CEO Roh Hwan-cheol, who previously worked at Samsung SDI, while her father, Chairman Jeong, does not participate as a member of the board.
Soulbrain Holdings was established in 2020 when Soulbrain transitioned to a holding company structure through a corporate split. It holds a 31% stake in Soulbrain and has 45 subsidiaries (6 listed companies and 39 unlisted companies). For the last fiscal year on a consolidation basis, Soulbrain Holdings recorded sales of 515.6 billion won and operating profit of 85.7 billion won, marking a decrease of 22.1% and 29.1%, respectively, from the previous year. This is attributed to the decline in the operational rate of client semiconductor production lines.
Co-CEO Jeong is expected to focus on improving the performance of core business operations and identifying new business opportunities. It is analyzed that efforts will be made to reduce the group’s reliance on the chemical materials business. Since 2015, Soulbrain Holdings has been investing in numerous healthcare corporations, starting with GENIC, followed by Ark Diagnostics, and Sear.
Soulbrain was founded in 1986 and originated from Technomarket. It develops and produces precision chemical materials needed for semiconductors, displays, and secondary batteries. Specifically, it has localised various materials, including high-purity hydrofluoric acid for semiconductors. It supplies electrolytes and additives required for secondary batteries.