Seo Jung-jin, Honorary Chairman of Celltrion Group, Receives EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year Award

[Asia Economy Reporter Ji-hwan Park] Seo Jung-jin, Honorary Chairman of Celltrion Group, has been awarded the ‘2021 EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™’ hosted by EY Global. He is the first Korean recipient in the 21-year history of the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year award.

According to EY Hanyoung, a global accounting and consulting firm, EY held the ‘2021 EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year Award Ceremony’ online early morning on the 11th (Korean time). This year, 45 entrepreneurs from 38 countries competed for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year award, and Honorary Chairman Seo was selected as the final winner. The EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year award is presented annually by EY, one of the global Big Four accounting and consulting firms, and is regarded as the ‘Oscar of the business world.’

Honorary Chairman Seo founded the bio company Celltrion Group in 2003 with a seed capital of 50 million KRW and five colleagues. Over the past 20 years, Celltrion Group has pursued its ambition to enhance health and welfare not only in Korean society but globally. Celltrion Group leads in producing treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases and has recently taken the lead in developing treatments for COVID-19. The company has grown to employ about 2,100 staff and holds sales approvals in over 90 countries. Its annual sales approach 2 trillion KRW.

Carmine Di Sibio, EY Global Chairman and CEO, said, “Honorary Chairman Seo has demonstrated everything a relentless entrepreneur should over the past decades. He was not afraid to take on the most difficult challenges in healthcare and has contributed to long-term value creation for Celltrion Group and our society.” Rosaleen Blair, Chair of the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year judging panel, said, “It is an honor to present this award to Honorary Chairman Seo. The judging panel was greatly inspired by his journey, leadership, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit.”

Honorary Chairman Seo said, “I am honored to receive such a prestigious award. I believe this moment will be a source of hope and encouragement for many companies and young people in Korea.” He added, “Entrepreneurship is about challenging new opportunities with colleagues for shared goals and social benefits. When I first founded Celltrion Group, my goal was to improve patients’ quality of life by enabling them to purchase safe, effective, yet affordable medicines.” He also pledged, “I will continue to take on challenges to create a better world for future generations.”

Honorary Chairman Seo majored in Industrial Engineering at Konkuk University. While working at Daewoo Motors, he was recognized within the organization and rapidly promoted. However, he experienced the pain of unemployment during the 1997 IMF crisis. Afterwards, Seo and his colleagues explored various entrepreneurial opportunities but faced repeated failures.

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