Celltrion founder’s first son to join boardroom

Celltrion founder and honorary chairman Seo Jung-jin’s eldest son Seo Jin-seok is expected to obtain a seat in the company’s boardroom next month, industry sources said on Sunday.

Celltrion is to finalize the appointment of the junior Seo as executive director at the shareholder meeting scheduled on March 26, the sources added.

The first son has been serving as senior vice president for Celltrion since 2017. Seo Jin-seok also spearheaded Celltrion Skin Cure, the group’s cosmetics unit from October 2017 to March 2019.

When finalized, Seo Jin-seok will be the chairman’s first of kin to become a member of the board. The chairman’s second son, Seo Joon-serk has been the director of the operation management department, but he is not on the board yet.

The local pharmaceutical industry expects that Seo Jin-seok could later become chairman, following in the footsteps of his father who stepped down from the post late last year.

In January 2019, the Celltrion founder officially said that he would hand over the group’s chief executive position to a non-family member and have his son take the chairman post of the board.

As of Dec. 31, founder Seo currently holds the title as honorary chairman at the biopharmaceutical company.

Celltrion Group, in the meantime, is led by CEO and Vice Chairman Kee Woo-sung and Celltrion Healthcare CEO Kim Hyoung-ki.

Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)