Lee Seung-gun

He was born in Seoul, South Korea on January 30, 1982. In 2001, he graduated from Youngdong High School [ko]. In 2007 he graduated from Seoul National University's School of Dentistry. At age 27,^[3] he completed his compulsory military service as a public health doctor in South Jeolla Province.^[1] Soon after he was discharged, he became interested in technology and entrepreneurship.^[3]

In 2007, he began his residency in Samsung Medical Center. He worked in a public health role in 2008.^[1] He worked part time as a dentist; he would spend the rest of his time developing app products, all of which failed. In 2015, he finally succeeded with the app Toss, which streamlined transfers of funds.^[3]

In 2013, he founded Viva Republica.^[1] In June 2021, Viva Republica raised more than US$400 million in a financing round, after which the company became valued at US$7.4 billion.^[4][2] This made him a billionaire, due to his stake in the company.^[4]

According to Lee, he had difficulty in convincing his parents to allow him to pivot from dentistry to entrepreneurship.^[3][5] It was reported in 2024 that he was unmarried.^[1]