Kim Beom-su
Source of wealth: Online services
...
...
The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Kim Beom-su's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Kim Beom-su could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 1.5 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Kim Beom-su could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.7 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Kim Beom-su could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 1.0 years.
And yes, we can also compare it with a rich country
But they couldn't just cover the cost of a poor country; Luxembourg is considered the country with the highest per capita investment in education in the world, and Kim Beom-su could pay for it entirely for 1.3 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Kim Beom-su could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 5.7 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Kim Beom-su with Israel, the country that invests the most per capita in research in the world, they could cover the total cost of the system for 0.1 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Kim Beom-su's fortune is equivalent to 23 tons of gold. It's hard to process, since we don't usually keep a handful of gold bars in our piggy banks.
A standard gold ring usually weighs between 4 and 7 grams. Let's say this one weighs 5 grams. It's usually 18 karats.
Based on today's gold price (excluding the jeweler's commission, shipping, or anything else), that ring would be worth $546.86.
Kim Beom-su could buy 6,157,670 gold rings. That's a lot of fingers and way too many gifts!!
And if you're struggling to visualize that many rings, it would take 1 trucks to transport them. Although Kim Beom-su will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
Kim Beom-su is the founder of Kakao, South Korea's biggest messaging app, which is installed in 90% of the country's smartphones. He stepped down as chairman and left the board in 2022.
Kakao's tens of millions of users also use the app for gaming, shopping and chatting.
In 2014 Kakao acquired the country's No. 2 search engine Daum in an all stock transaction worth $3.3 billion, which resulted in a back door listing.
That same year the South Korean government classified Kakao as a large company; it is the first tech startup that made it into the big leagues.
In 2021 Kim signed the Giving Pledge, committing to donate the majority of his wealth to charitable causes.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison