John Il Kwun is a Managing Director responsible for Carlyle’s buyout activities in Korea and telecom, media and technology investments across the Asia-Pacific region. He is based in Seoul.
Before Carlyle, Mr. Kwun served nine years in the Hong Kong and New York offices of Goldman, Sachs & Co., most recently as Head of Mergers and Acquisitions for North Asia. He has played a leading role in Carlyle’s investments in KorAm Bank and Taiwan Broadband Communications, which the firm exited in 2004 and 2006, respectively.
He currently serves on the Board of Directors of several companies owned by Carlyle, including Eastern Multimedia (Taiwan’s second-largest cable television company), Hyundai Communications and Network (Korea’s fourth-largest cable television company) and WILLCOM (Japan’s largest PHS wireless company). He is also Vice Chairman of the Korea Lacrosse Association, Governor of the American Chamber and a former Director of Caribbean Investment Holdings and Daum Communications.
Mr. Kwun received an A.B. from Harvard College, an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.