| Kwon Hyuk-bin | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1974 (age 50–51) |
| Nationality | South Korean |
| Other names | HyukBin Kwon or Kwon Hyuk-bin |
| Alma mater | Sogang University (BEng.) |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman, investor, philanthropist |
| Title | Founder and Chairman of Smilegate Holdings. |
Kwon Hyuk-bin (Korean: 권혁빈; born 1974) is a South Korean businessman, investor, and philanthropist. A billionaire who co-founded South Korea's third largest gaming company, Smilegate, which is the maker of the popular Crossfire games. Crossfire has gone on to become the most popular first-person shooter game in history. He owns 100% of Smilegate Holdings, which he founded in 2002.
He is among the richest people in South Korea. In December 2024, Forbes estimated his net wealth at US$3.2 billion and ranked him 9th richest in the country.
Education and career
Kwon holds an electrical engineering degree from Sogang University. After a failed education startup, 4Csof, Kwon turned down a software engineering position at Samsung to pursue his goal of developing video games. He partnered with Tencent to break into the Chinese high-technology market.
Philanthropy
Kwon has been involved in starting Orange Farm, South Korea's largest private incubator and has donated over $5 million to building schools in Vietnam and China. He has also contributed over $2 million to his alma mater at Sogang University.
References
- ^ "THE INVESTOR". www.theinvestor.co.kr.
- ^ Chung, Grace. "Online Hit Game CrossFire Mints South Korea's Richest Self-Made Billionaire".
- "Kwon Hyuk-bin". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
- "[Super Rich] Seven numbers to explain self-made billionaire owner of Smilegate". 22 December 2016.
- "Bio". wealthx.com. Archived from < the original on 2018-02-20.