MBK Partners chairman featured in Forbes Asia's '2024 Heroes Of Philanthropy'

MBK Partners' founder and chairman Michael ByungJu Kim / Courtesy of MBK Partners

MBK Partners' founder and chairman Michael ByungJu Kim has been named one of the 15 members of Forbes Asia's 2024 Heroes Of Philanthropy, MBK announced Thursday.

This marks Kim's third inclusion on the list, following 2021 and 2022. He is the only individual from Korea to be recognized this year.

Forbes highlighted Kim's contributions to education. In April, he donated $25 million to his alma mater, Haverford College in the U.S., to establish the Institute for Ethical Inquiry & Leadership. This donation is one of the largest in Haverford's 191-year history.

In 2021, he also donated over $25 million to the Seoul Metropolitan Government to fund a new public library in Seoul. Since founding the MBK Scholarship Foundation in 2007, he has continued to provide need-based grants to Korean college students.

Other notable figures on this year's list include Tadashi Yanai, chairman and CEO of Fast Retailing, the parent company of Japan's Uniqlo; Lei Jun, founder and CEO of China's Xiaomi; Li Ka-Shing, senior advisor at Hong Kong's CK Asset Holdings; and Daniel Tsai, director of Taiwan's Fubon Financial Holdings.