The founder of the studio that developed Stellar Blade entered the top 50 richest Koreans for the first time
Forbes published an April 2025 update of the richest residents in South Korea. Kim Hyung-tae (Kim Hyung-tae), the founder of Shift Up, known for the hit games Stellar Blade and Goddess of Victory: Nikke, made it to 46th place on the list.
Stellar Blade
This marks Kim’s debut on the list of South Korea’s wealthiest individuals. Forbes evaluated his net worth at $725 million. The publication noted that last summer—right after Shift Up's IPO—his fortune was even larger. At that time, Kim's wealth exceeded one billion dollars, but as the company's stock value decreased, his net worth declined.
In addition to the founder of Shift Up, eight other people associated with the gaming industry were included in Forbes' ranking.
- Kakao founder Kim Beom-su — seventh place with $3.3 billion.
- Minority shareholders of Nexon, the founder’s daughters, Kim Jung-min and Jung-youn — 12th place with $2.6 billion.
- Smilegate founder Kwon Hyuk-bin — 13th place with $2.55 billion.
- Nexon minority shareholder, the founder’s widow, Yoo Jung-hyun — 15th place with $2 billion.
- KRAFTON founder Chang Byung-gyu — 25th place with $1.07 billion.
- NCSOFT founder Kim Taek-jin — 31st place with $980 million.
- Lionheart Studio founder Kim Jae-young — 42nd place with $770 million.