Chair Jin Yang-gon of the HLB Group will step down as CEO of the group's anticancer drug developer HLB. Kim Hong-cheol, CEO and president of HLB Innovation, has been nominated as HLB's new head.
HLB Group said on the 2nd it carried out its regular 2026 executive appointments.
With this reshuffle, HLB, which had been run under a dual-CEO system with Chair Jin Yang-gon and CEO Baek Yun-gi, will shift to a sole-CEO system under President Kim Hong-cheol.
The company said it was a "decision for strategic focus and building a foundation for new growth," adding, "We focused on strengthening the group's mid- to long-term growth strategy by reorganizing the leadership structure."
According to the company, Chair Jin will focus on his role as chair of the group's board. The company said, "Chair Jin plans to focus on securing future growth engines, synergy among affiliates, and strengthening global partnerships to drive the group's continued corporate value enhancement and global expansion."
Earlier, HLB sought U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the combination therapy of the new liver cancer drug "rivoceranib" and China's Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine's "camrelizumab," but in May last year the FDA requested additional information, dealing a blow to its push into the U.S. market.
The group plans to strengthen the sole-CEO system to sharpen management focus and to establish a clear accountability structure based on performance.
New HLB CEO Kim Hong-cheol was credited, as the inaugural CEO of HLB Innovation acquired in 2023, with laying the groundwork for growth through organizational streamlining and management efficiency.
The group said, "CEO Kim was highly recognized for actively supporting the subsidiary 'Verismo,' which is developing a CAR-T Therapy in the United States, contributing to global R&D outcomes," adding, "As HLB's CEO, Kim is also expected to steadily manage and support the new drug approval and commercialization preparations of the U.S. subsidiary 'Elevar.'"
In addition, the communication style of shareholder briefings that Chair Jin has maintained since 2017 will be expanded across the group, and Jin plans to actively communicate directly with shareholders of the listed affiliates.
The "On-site Support Headquarters," which functions as the group's control tower and reports directly to Chair Jin, was also reorganized. The planning and personnel institutional sector was expanded and reorganized into the "Strategic Planning institutional sector," and a "Future Strategy Team" was newly established under it. The company said it will use this to systematically design the group's mid- to long-term growth strategy.
The company said, "Based on confidence in the approval and commercialization of new drugs for liver cancer and cholangiocarcinoma next year, this reflects our determination to focus on discovering new business opportunities and securing future drivers."
Heads of major affiliates were also reshuffled.
Yoon Jong-seon, CEO of HLB Science, has been nominated as the new CEO and president of HLB Innovation. HLB CEO Baek Yun-gi will serve concurrently as CEO of HLB Life Science, while incumbent HLB Life Science CEO Nam Sang-woo will serve as an adviser to the HLB Group.
Lee Ji-hwan, an executive director on the group's On-site Support Headquarters Bio-Link Team, was promoted to senior managing director and swiftly appointed CEO of HLB Cell, a subsidiary of HLB Life Science. Regarding Lee's appointment, the company said it was "a strategic personnel move to boost organizational vitality through a generational shift and to strengthen the foundation for future growth."
HLB Genex CEO Kim Do-yeon will concurrently serve as CEO of the subsidiary HLB Neurotov, and HLB PANAGENE CEO Jang In-geun will concurrently serve as CEO of the subsidiary BioSquare.
These appointments will be finalized by each company's board of directors at a later date.
Moon Jeong-hwan, vice chair of HLB Group's human resources institutional sector, said, "This personnel move will be a turning point in advancing the group's growth structure through strategic focus and the building of a foundation for future growth," adding, "We will further strengthen our performance-centered organizational management system to clarify responsibility and results, and we will secure top talent to further enhance the group's drive and execution across the board."
Moon added, "Under Chair Jin Yang-gon's future strategy leadership, we expect cooperation among affiliates as well as overseas business expansion to pick up speed."