"Sell My House to Support 100 Employees' Rent and Loan Interest" ? Will Seunggun Lee's April Fools' Day Pledge Become Reality Again This Year?

Seunggun Lee, CEO of Toss, has once again made a bold internal pledge to mark April Fools' Day. This time, he announced that he would sell his own house to support employees' housing costs.

According to Viva Republica, the operator of Toss, CEO Lee stated via the company's internal messenger on April 1, "I will sell the home I currently own under my name, and with the proceeds, I will support 100 Toss team members by covering their monthly rent and loan interest for life."

Seunggun Lee, CEO of Toss. The Asia Business Daily DB

원본보기 아이콘

He explained, "Since before founding the company, I have been aware of the gap between people who profit from real estate and those who struggle with housing costs," adding, "As I thought about the future of our community, I decided to put this idea into action." Eligible recipients include employees who currently pay monthly rent or are repaying housing-related loan interest. Even employees who already own a home can apply if they are still paying loan interest. However, those without any rent or interest burden are excluded.

Applications are open until 9 p.m. on the same day, after which 100 recipients will be randomly selected. The winners will be announced before midnight, and selected employees will receive full monthly rent or loan interest support after submitting a copy of their contract. The support will continue until the employee acquires their own home. While CEO Lee's April Fools' Day events may seem like jokes, he is well known for actually following through on such pledges.

In 2022, he promised to provide 20 electric vehicles and ended up lending cars free of charge for a year to 10 employees. Last year, to celebrate turning a profit, he organized a group trip to Okinawa, Japan, for 100 employees. Both instances were reportedly funded personally by Lee.

The company stated, "Although we cannot confirm whether this is another April Fools' Day event, past cases show that the CEO has found practical ways to express gratitude to employees."

CEO Seung-Gun Lee announced another bold internal pledge to mark April Fools' Day. This time, he plans to sell his house to support employees' housing expenses. The Asia Business Daily

원본보기 아이콘

Meanwhile, Viva Republica posted a record-high consolidated revenue of 2.6983 trillion won last year, up 38% from the previous year. Operating profit jumped 270.3% to 336 billion won, and net profit soared 846.7% to 201.8 billion won. The company cited platform enhancement and increased use of advertising, payment, and financial services as the main drivers of improved results. In particular, a rise in personalized advertising efficiency and the expansion of easy payment services were analyzed as significant contributors to revenue growth.

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.