Kim Keon-hee (; born 2 September 1972) is a South Korean businesswoman, who is the current

First Lady of South Korea The first lady of the Republic of Korea (, informally referred to as FLOTROK or FLOSK), commonly known as the first lady of South Korea, is the titled held by the hostess of the presidential residence, usually the wife of the president of South ...

since 10 May 2022 as the wife of the 13th president of South Korea

Yoon Suk-yeol Yoon Suk-yeol (; born 18 December 1960) is a South Korean politician, former public prosecutor and lawyer who has been serving as the 13th and current president of South Korea since 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as the prosecutor ...

. She is the current

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especial ...

and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the

art exhibition An art exhibition is traditionally the space in which art objects (in the most general sense) meet an audience. The exhibit is universally understood to be for some temporary period unless, as is rarely true, it is stated to be a "permanent exhi ...

company, Covana Contents.

Early life

Kim was born on 2 September 1972 in

Yangpyeong Yangpyeong County (''Yangpyeong-gun'') is a county in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Climate Yangpyeong has a monsoon-influenced humid continental climate ( Köppen: ''Dwa'') with cold, dry winters and hot, rainy summers. Korean War Yangpy ...

, South Korea. She attended Myungil Girls' High School before graduating from

Kyonggi University Kyonggi University (KGU; ) is an accredited, private higher education institution, established in 1947. KGU has over 17,000 students in majors in undergraduate and graduate programs on two campuses. The main campus is in Suwon, located 30 miles f ...

with an art degree.

Career

In 2009, Kim established Covana Contents, a company that specializes in

art exhibitions An art exhibition is traditionally the space in which art objects (in the most general sense) meet an audience. The exhibit is universally understood to be for some temporary period unless, as is rarely true, it is stated to be a "permanent exhib ...

and has been serving as the chief executive officer and president since then. In 2019, the media reported that she had allegedly not paid taxes. Kim has been investigated for allegedly taking kickbacks for hosting art exhibitions. In 2021, there were reports that Kim had inflated her resume with connections to the

New York University Stern School of Business The New York University Leonard N. Stern School of Business (commonly referred to as NYU Stern, The Stern School of Business, or simply Stern) is the business school of New York University, a private research university based in New York City. I ...

. In a press conference, she later publicly apologized and promised only "to focus on role as Yoon's spouse even if Yoon is elected." Following her promise, Yoon included abolition of Office of the First Lady within the

Office of the President Office of the President can refer to: * Office of the President of Brazil * Office of the President of the People's Republic of China (entity in the Office of the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party) * Office of the President (Republi ...

in his campaign promise. At the end of 2021, prosecutors announced that they will start investigations against Kim for corruption regarding a stock market manipulation.

Personal life

Kim married Yoon Suk-yeol in 2012. On 10 March 2022, upon her husband's election as president-elect of South Korea, Kim stated that she preferred the term president's spouse to first lady.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Keon-hee 1972 births Living people 21st-century businesswomen 21st-century South Korean businesspeople First Ladies of South Korea Kyonggi University alumni Sookmyung Women's University alumni Seoul National University alumni Kookmin University alumni People from Yangpyeong County South Korean chief executives South Korean women in business Women chief executives Yoon Suk-yeol