Attention Turns to Whistleblower Amid 'Song Youngsook Corporate Card' Controversy

Who Is Kim Taeho, Former CEO of Cure Therapeutics?

Amid growing controversy both inside and outside of Hanmi Group over Chairwoman Song Youngsook's corporate card usage records, attention is turning to Kim Taeho, former CEO of Curetherapeutics, who is providing related materials to the media under the guise of a whistleblower.

According to a compilation of reports from The Asia Business Daily on August 4, Kim previously worked for about three years, approximately 30 years ago, as a member of the executive secretary’s office at Hanmi Pharmaceutical. Around 2017, he founded Curetherapeutics, a biotech specializing in immunotherapy. Curetherapeutics is reported to have closed by the end of 2024.

Kim has maintained connections with Hanmi Group based on personal ties with figures such as Im Mo, nephew of Hanmi Group’s late founder Lim Sungki. He is also reportedly acquainted with Shin Dongguk, Chairman of Hanyang Precision and major shareholder of Hanmi Science. During the Hanmi Group’s corporate governance dispute, Kim held meetings with some current and former employees, and he is said to have recently made contact with Chairman Shin as well.

Song Youngsook, Chairwoman of Hanmi Group, and Shin Dongguk, Chairman of Hanyang Precision. Provided by each company

About two years ago, Kim reportedly sought investment from Hanmi Group for Curetherapeutics, but his request was declined. Referring to these circumstances, a Hanmi Group official who met with Kim at the time stated, “Kim explained that Hanmi could become a global company if it invested in the company he was running.” A few months after Kim’s contact with Hanmi Group to request investment, Im joined Hanmi Pharmaceutical as an executive.

Within Hanmi Group, there is speculation that Kim’s recent actions are not unrelated to these past events. Currently, Kim is known to have shared plans with several media outlets to raise various allegations targeting the mother-daughter duo—Chairwoman Song Youngsook and Vice Chairwoman Lim Juhyun—on behalf of shareholders of Hanmi Science.

In a phone call with this publication, Kim said, “I served under the previous chairman and still respect him today. Many issues are being raised by (Hanmi Group’s) employees, but nothing seems likely to change, and it appears that internal systems for self-correction are not functioning. That’s why I decided to take action from the outside, hoping Hanmi could become what the late chairman aspired to.”

Regarding the perception inside Hanmi Group that links his recent actions to the rejected investment request, Kim explained, “Back then, Hanmi Group conducted two rounds of Q&A with me, and after that, there was no further response and everything fizzled out.” He added, “I didn’t just know one or two issues about Hanmi—if I was going to attack them over this, I would have done it then.”

Regarding his recent contact with Chairman Shin, Kim stated, “A former Hanmi Group executive suggested that it would be good for us to work together, which led to us getting in touch. My intention was to mediate between people who were in conflict.”

As Kim is not currently affiliated with Hanmi Group, it appears that the materials related to the recent controversy surrounding Chairwoman Song have been handed to him through internal sources within the group. However, it remains unclear through whom or by what means this information is being delivered.

The Hanmi Group’s management dispute, traditionally a rivalry between the mother-daughter pair and the brothers (Im Jongyun, Chairman of Coree Group, and Im Jonghoon, CEO of Hanmi Fine Chemical), is shifting to a contest between Chairman Shin and the founder’s family.

Recently, CEO Im Jonghoon agreed to sell his 2.50% stake in Hanmi Science to a friendly fund aligned with the mother-daughter side, while Chairman Shin decided to acquire an additional 5.27% stake from the side supporting Chairman Im Jongyun. As a result, the gap in shareholdings between the founder’s family and their allies (40.86%) and the group aligned with Chairman Shin (35.10%) has narrowed to 5.76 percentage points.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.