1. Billionaire Jay Y. Lee
South Korean billionaire - Mr. Jay Y. Lee (Chairman of Samsung) owns an estimated assets of 19.1 billion USD, ranking 130th in the list of the richest people in the world, according to Forbes data on February 2, 2026.
In 2022, billionaire Jay Y. Lee was appointed CEO of Samsung Electronics, and also the head of the largest corporation in South Korea after his father passed away in 2020.
2. Billionaire Michael Kim
South Korean billionaire - Mr. Michael Kim owns assets of about 9.5 billion USD, ranked 346th in the ranking of the richest people in the world, according to Forbes updates.
Michael Kim is the co-founder of MBK Partners, a private investment fund based in Seoul, with a total value of managed assets estimated at about 30 billion USD.
3. Billionaire Cho Jung-ho
According to Forbes updates, billionaire Cho Jung-ho owns assets of about 8.4 billion USD, ranking 412th in the list of the richest people in the world.
Mr. Cho Jung-ho is currently Chairman of the Board of Directors of Meritz Financial Group, and used to work for Korean Air in Europe.
4. Billionaire Hong Ra-hee
Billionaire Hong Ra-hee owns assets worth 8.3 billion USD, ranking 417th in the current ranking of the richest people.
Hong Ra-hee is the widow of Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee, who was once the richest person in South Korea before his death in 2020.
She served as director of the Samsung Art Museum, also known as Leeum, and the Ho-Am Art Museum before resigning in 2017.
5. Billionaire Seo Jung-jin
Billionaire Seo Jung-jin ranks 421st, with an estimated fortune of 8.2 billion USD, according to Forbes updates.
He is the co-founder of Celltrion, a biopharmaceutical company specializing in producing drugs to treat cancer, flu, rheumatoid arthritis and many other diseases.
South Korea also has many other billionaire faces with assets from 6 - 8 billion USD, such as: billionaire Lee Boo-jin with assets worth 7.9 billion USD, ranked 451st in the world; billionaire Lee Seo-hyun with assets worth 7.3 billion USD, ranked 512th in the world; billionaire Euisun Chung owning assets worth 6.7 billion USD, ranked 574th in the world.
