Summary

Koo Kwang-mo is the chairman and chief executive of LG. In the five years since taking the helm in 2018, he has been responsible for expanding LG’s battery and electronics businesses as LG’s core future new business. Mr. Koo became chairman of the conglomerate at the young age of 40 following the untimely death of the late Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mr. Koo Bon-moo, in 2018.

Under Koo Kwang-mo’s leadership, sales at LG Group’s seven listed companies increased 37.7 percent from 138 trillion won in 2019 to 190 trillion won last year. Operating profit rose 77.4 percent from 4.6 trillion won to 8.22 trillion won. His focus on the battery and electronics businesses helped LG Energy Solutions, which makes electric vehicle batteries, post record annual sales of 25 trillion won and operating profit of 1 trillion won in 2022.

Mr. Koo has been recognized for his pragmatic management philosophy, which has led to the upgrading of the business portfolio. He has been focusing on investing in the “ABC” (AI, bio, and cleantech) business, which he has identified as the group’s new growth engine. In March 2023, LG announced that it would invest approximately 54 trillion won in domestic investment in ABC businesses through 2027 under Mr. Koo’s direction.

One of Koo’s accomplishments was to clean up his business portfolio through selection and focus. The reason he was able to focus his investment on “ABC” business is because he liquidated underperforming businesses. In 2021, LG Electronics exited the MC business (smartphones) under Koo’s direction. In 2019, LG Display’s organic light-emitting diode (OLED) business for lighting and LG’s e-payment business were dismantled. And in 2020, LG Chem’s liquid crystal display (LCD) polarizer business was sold to China. With this, LG completed the reorganization of its business structure and challenged itself to find new growth engines such as OLED, battery, and automotive electronics.

However, Koo is likely to face a number of challenges amid an uncertain external business environment. First of all, global geopolitical crises such as the trade and technology disputes between the US and China, and the Russia-Ukraine war are still ongoing. In addition, the battery business, which is the company’s current focus, requires large-scale investment, so expanding new businesses will be a long-term battle to secure profitability. This is why LG Energy Solutions issued its first corporate bond worth 500 billion won since its launch in June 2023 to expand battery production capacity and invest in R&D to develop next-generation batteries. Competitors in the new business arena are also formidable. While LG is putting the accelerator on its AI business by introducing its own AI model ‘EXAONE(Expert AI for everyone)’ developed by LG AI Research, domestic companies such as Samsung, SK, and Naver, as well as global big tech companies such as Google and MS, are all entering the competition.

Mr. Koo is also still dealing with an inheritance dispute. In September of 2022, Koo, along with his mother Kim Young-sik and two sisters, LG Welfare Foundation CEO Koo Yeon-kyung and Koo Yeon-soo, filed a lawsuit against the head of the Yongsan tax office at the Seoul Administrative Court to cancel the inheritance tax penalty. They claim that they want their money back because the tax authorities imposed additional inheritance tax on some inheritance items. They reportedly disagreed with the tax authorities over the value of their 1.12 percent stake in unlisted LG CNS, which they inherited from the late former chairman Koo Bon-moo. Koo Kwang-mo is the biological son of Koo Bon-moo’s brother, Hee Sung Group Chairman Koo Bon-yeom, who was adopted by the former chairman.

Timeline

▲ 1978 = Born as a nephew to Koo Bon-moo.

▲ 1995 = Graduated from Youngdong High School.

▲ 2004 = Adopted by Koo Bon-moo.

▲ 2006 = LG Electronics finance sector assistant manager.

▲ 2007 = LG Electronics finance sector manager.

▲ 2009 = LG Electronics Home Entertainment Sector New Jersey Corporation manager.

▲ 2014 = LG Synergy Team Executive Manager.

▲ 2017 = LG Management Strategy Executive Director.

▲ January 2018 = LG Electronics B2B Sector ID (Information Display) Business Executive Director.

▲ June 2018 = LG Group Chief Executive.

▲ September 2022 = Filed a lawsuit to cancel the inheritance tax penalty at the Seoul Administrative Court against the head of the Yongsan Tax Office with his mother Kim Young-Sik and two sisters.