From the Editor

Last Updated Apr 13, 2026, 1:01am EDT

  • Michael Kim cofounded MBK Partners, the Seoul-based private equity firm that bears his initials and manages more than $33 billion in assets.
  • His ING Insurance Korea, which went public in 2017, was the first company wholly owned by a private equity firm to list on the Korean exchange.
  • In 2015 his firm's $6.1 billion takeover of Tesco's Korean operation, Homeplus, marked the country's biggest private-equity deal to date.
  • Kim was born in South Korea and was educated in the U.S. from preparatory school onward; he obtained U.S. citizenship along the way.
  • He is an avid art collector and sits on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Wealth History
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Personal Stats

Age
62
Source of Wealth
Private equity, Self Made
Self-Made Score
7
Philanthropy Score
1
Residence
Seoul, South Korea
Citizenship
United States
Marital Status
Married
Children
2
Education
Master of Business Administration, Harvard Business School; Bachelor of Arts/Science, Haverford College
Did you know
Kim is married to Park Kyung-ah, daughter of the late Park Tae-joon, a former prime minister and founder of the steel giant Posco.
In 2020, he published his first novel, "Offerings," which traces the life of an investment banker amid the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
In Their Own Words

I always thought the success I've had is due to some talent, yes, hard work, yes, but it's also due to luck. Recognition of that is critical to giving you a sense of reality and it's from that recognition that you get humility.

Michael Kim
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