Celltrion Launches 'Owner 2nd Generation'... Merger of Three Companies Gains Momentum

Appointment of Seojin Seok as Executive Director and Senior Vice President at the General Meeting of Shareholders on the 26th

Seojin Seok, Senior Vice President of Celltrion

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] Celltrion has ushered in the 'second-generation owner' era. Honorary Chairman Seo Jung-jin stepped down from the board, and his eldest and second sons joined the board as inside directors, marking the beginning of a generational shift.

At the regular shareholders' meeting on the 26th, Celltrion and Celltrion Pharm appointed Seo Jin-seok, the eldest son of Honorary Chairman Seo, and Senior Vice President of Celltrion, as registered executives of both Celltrion and Celltrion Pharm.

Born in 1984, Vice President Seo graduated from the Department of Animal Resources at Seoul National University's College of Agricultural and Life Sciences and earned a Ph.D. in Life Sciences from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). Since joining Celltrion in 2014, he has led key organizations such as the R&D Headquarters Product Planning Division, Biotechnology Research Institute 1, and the Product Development Division.

In 2017, he became CEO of Celltrion Skincure, a cosmetics affiliate, where he worked to revitalize the struggling business. He returned to Celltrion in 2019 to lead the Product Development Division.

At this shareholders' meeting, Celltrion added cosmetics and health functional food manufacturing and sales to its business objectives. Inside and outside the group, there is anticipation that Vice President Seo Jin-seok, who gained experience and capabilities in the cosmetics business through managing Celltrion Skincure, will combine his know-how with the biopharmaceutical field to create synergy.

Seojunseok, Director at Celltrion

On the same day, Seo Jun-seok, the second son and director of Celltrion, was also appointed as a registered executive of Celltrion Healthcare. Born in 1987, Director Seo holds a Ph.D. in Biotechnology from Inha University. He joined Celltrion as a manager in 2017 and currently serves as head of operations support. He has been building practical experience in factory production and operations while broadening his understanding of the overall bio industry.

A Celltrion official stated, "Honorary Chairman Seo announced his retirement plan in January 2019 during a press conference, expressing his intention to separate ownership and management. Vice President Seo will take on the role of board chairman, while professional managers will be responsible for company operations."

With Honorary Chairman Seo's retirement and the eldest and second sons, who were previously non-registered executives, becoming registered executives of the three major companies, changes are expected within the Celltrion Group. In particular, the merger process of the three companies?Celltrion, Celltrion Healthcare, and Celltrion Pharm?is expected to gain momentum.

Last September, the Celltrion Group established Celltrion Healthcare Holdings, the holding company of Celltrion Healthcare, to facilitate the merger of the three companies.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.