Cha Corporation Appoints Kwon Hyunji, Born in 1990, as New CEO

Former Chai Corporation CEO Shin Hyun-sung Devotes Himself to Group Management as CEO of Chai Holdco

Domestic fintech company Chai Corporation announced on April 13 that it has appointed Kwon Hyun-ji, Head of Business, as the new CEO.

Born in 1990, the new CEO Kwon Hyun-ji joined Chai Corporation in 2019, the year the company was founded. She contributed to establishing Chai’s growth strategy and organizational culture, successfully leading major projects such as the launch of the Chai Check Card and Chai Credit Card. Until recently, she oversaw overall business operations including sales, marketing, and partnerships as Head of Business, driving business expansion. With Kwon’s appointment as CEO, Shin Hyun-sung, who had been leading Chai Corporation, will focus on group-level strategy execution and operations as CEO of Chai Holdco.

CEO Shin Hyun-sung of Chai Holdco said, “New CEO Kwon Hyun-ji has experienced Chai’s inception and growth firsthand and is the leader who best understands Chai’s unique DNA. With her youthful ideas and boldness, we expect her to establish Chai’s culture as a fintech brand favored by the 2030 generation and significantly contribute to both internal and external growth by expanding domestic and international business.”

CEO Kwon Hyun-ji of Chai Corporation started her career in 2013 at Group Gordon, a PR firm based in New York, and later led marketing and external communications at Uber Korea and domestic blockchain company Terra.

CEO Kwon said, “The Chai Card, which grew through invitations and word of mouth, is a service that started based on fandom. The unique and competitive aspect of Chai is the fun in discovering a new brand, such as accumulating ‘lightning’ points with each payment and using the collected lightning to enter raffles (a method of selecting buyers through a draw).” She added, “We will continue to add highly addictive fun elements and new types of financial services so that Chai fans can keep experiencing something different.”

Chai Corporation launched the Chai Check Card with BC Card in August 2020, incorporating game elements. It gained attention as a card favored by the MZ generation due to its significant discount benefits, attracting a total investment of 141 billion KRW from venture capital firms.

Following the popularity of the check card, Chai released the Chai Credit Card in February in partnership with Hana Card. Currently, the company is expanding its business not only domestically but also in Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and India. With over 200 employees worldwide including overseas branches, Chai plans to continue aggressive hiring of experts in various fields to promote new businesses and target global markets.