Tim Alper is a journalist who covers betting news and regulation for CasinoBeats. He joined the CasinoBeats team in May 2025. He reports on breaking news and developments in the world of betting, casinos, and...
Read Full BioEfforts to appoint a new CEO of the South Korean casino operator Kangwon Land have hit a roadblock, a new report has claimed.
The leadership vacuum at Kangwon Land has persisted for over a year, the South Korean weekly news magazine Sisa Week reported.
The outlet explained that two years have passed since former Kangwon Land chief Lee Sam-geol resigned from his post, with four months of his tenure remaining.
The term of the vice president who assumed the role of acting CEO has also expired. This has apparently left the operator, which runs the High1 casino-resort in Gangwon Province, rudderless.
Residents Express Concerns at Power Vacuum
Concerns are growing both at the firm and at a provincial level, “as the leadership vacuum persists at this critical juncture,” Sisa Week wrote.
Lee stepped aside in December 2023, with Vice President Choi Cheol-gyu acting as interim until December 2025. The firm’s rules permit Choi to remain in the position on a rolling basis until a successor is appointed.
An executive nomination committee was formed in August 2024, about nine months after Lee’s departure. However, the nomination process stalled after former South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol attempted to declare martial law.
The media outlet noted that the same fate has also befallen the Korea Racing Authority. The authority is the South Korean horse racing operating monopoly.
The authority has recently restarted its own CEO selection process from scratch, the outlet wrote.
Late last year, South Korea’s Joint Committee for Regional Revitalization issued a statement on the matter. It urged the government to provide a roadmap for appointing a new CEO of Kangwon Land.
“Failing to provide a schedule for a new appointment is casting the future of Kangwon Land into doubt,” the committee said. “We are facing a situation where residents’ anxiety will turn into anger if they are forced to wait any longer.”
Kangwon Land CEO: Search for New Leader Continues
High1 is the only South Korean casino that allows domestic passport holders to enter. Its ownership structure is complicated. The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy’s mine reclamation company owns over a third of its shares.
The surrounding Gangwon Province is also a minority shareholder, as is the South Korean National Pension Service.
The remainder of Kangwon Land’s shares are traded publicly on the Korea Exchange. Uncertainty over its leadership appears to be affecting share prices, which have declined by over 2% in the past five days.
Share prices in casino operators who only admit foreign passport holders, such as Paradise, have risen in the same time period.
Paradise saw share prices rise by just under 1% in the same time period, with its rival Lotte Tour Development experiencing a 0.23% share price rise on January 12.
Last year, Kangwon Land announced the opening of a new residential gambling addiction treatment center located near its casino. The center is a national first. Kangwon Land said it plans to open more of these centers if an initial pilot program proves successful.
