Nexon founder tops list of stock rich among self-made entrepreneurs

SEOUL, July 27 (Yonhap) -- The founder of leading online game maker Nexon Co. is South Korea's richest man among 50 self-made entrepreneurs ranging in age from the 30s to 50s, data showed Wednesday.

Kim Jung-ju, the chairman of Nexon's holding firm NXC Corp., holds stock assets worth 2.87 trillion won (US$2.5 billion), according to the data compiled by CEOSCORE, a website that tracks conglomerates, financial firms and state-run companies.

Kim was summoned by prosecutors for the second time last week over his alleged involvement in a senior prosecutor's suspicious stock transactions.

Kim is followed by Kim Beom-su, founder of South Korea's top mobile messenger KakaoTalk, with a net worth of 1.18 trillion won as of July 15, the data showed.

Lee Hae-jin, chairman of the board at Naver Corp., South Korea's top Internet portal operator, took the third spot with a net worth of 1.1 trillion won.

Lee's wealth could rise as LINE Corp., a Japan-based global chat app operator and a subsidiary of Naver, debuted on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange earlier this month.

Also on the list was Ahn Cheol-soo, former co-chair of the minor opposition People's Party, with stock assets worth 99.7 billion won, according to the data.

Ahn founded AhnLab Inc., South Korea's leading anti-virus software firm, before becoming a politician.

The average wealth of the 50 self-made entrepreneurs is 260 billion won, according to data compiled by CEOSCORE on their stock assets.

entropy@yna.co.kr
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