Our Team

Albert Hawk

Chairman

Albert “Bud” Hawk is the Chairman of Corstone. Mr. Hawk has created, grown, managed, and successfully exited companies for over 25 years.

In 1991, Mr. Hawk joined a London based team to roll up and consolidate companies in the real estate, financial services and natural resource industries. After a successful exit, he joined Corstone with two partners in 1994.  Corstone initially began investing  in and managing IT, wireless, software and internet companies.

In 1996, Mr. Hawk began advising companies in Australia, South Korea and China, starting with infrastructure and human resource outsourcing.  Mr. Hawk led the initial team at Corstone China, which has invested in nonperforming loans, real estate, automotive suppliers, and financial services.  Mr. Hawk is also chairman of Corstone Asia, headquartered in Seoul.  Mr. Hawk has also been active in the Singapore and India investments, including fractional jet ownership and business process outsourcing.

He was the Chairman of a human resource outsourcing company. Mr. Hawk has served as the CEO of a publicly traded company that pioneered wireless, reliable mobile computing products and services to public safety and other wireless markets. Previously, Mr. Hawk was part of the executive team that grew a publicly traded natural resource and financial services holding company assets to over $1.5 billion in assets.

Mr. Hawk was a member of the Washington D.C. office of a national law firm, where he practiced corporate and securities law. Mr. Hawk also served as an attorney for the U.S government in commodity and securities areas.

Mr. Hawk is a speaker before business groups and is active in the community, including Tsinghua University in Beijing. He also serves on the Board of Special Love, a not-for-profit devoted to children with cancer, and Neediest Kids, a not-for-profit devoted to under privileged children with special needs.

Sunho Choi

Co-CEO/General Partner

Sunho Choi is a Co-CEO/General Partner of investments for Corstone Asia. Mr. Choi is responsible for Corstone investment activities in Asia, including China and Korea.

Prior to joining Corstone, Mr. Choi was a Senior Associate in the Investment Banking Division of Macquarie Securities in Korea where he led the execution process for a number of merger and acquisition and equity capital markets transactions.

Mr. Choi led Korean cross-border equity, debt securities issues and mergers and acquisitions.  His experience includes a number of sizable transactions including the dual listing in London and Korea of the USD 1.054 billion Macquarie Korea Infrastructure Fund, a USD 583 million convertible bond offering for Hynix Semiconductor Inc., and a USD 40 million pre-IPO securities issuance for Millinet Solar.  Total transaction size for Mr. Choi’s banking activities exceeded USD 3 billion.

Prior to Macquarie, he was an Associate on the International Finance Team in the Investment Banking Division of Samsung Securities. Mr. Choi was engaged in a number of transactions including a NYSE ADR listing for Woori Finance Holdings, a USD 250 million global bond offering for Korea East-West Power Corp., a USD 281 million offshore block trade for Woori Finance Holdings, a USD 25 million convertible bond offering for Pantech, a USD 15 million convertible bond offering for Wooyoung, and a USD 10 million convertible bond offering for STS Semiconductor. Total transaction size exceeded USD 1 billion.

Mr. Choi received his bachelor’s degree in economics and anthropology from Seoul National University and he had worked for a strategic consulting firm and a venture capital before he started his career.

Thomas Cho

Co-CEO/General Partner

Thomas Cho is a Co-CEO/General Partner of investments for Corstone Asia. Mr. Cho is responsible for Corstone investment activities in Asia, including China and Korea.

Prior to joining Corstone, Mr. Cho was a Senior Manager for the Investment Banking Division of Mirae Asset Securities in Korea.  During his tenure, Mr. Cho was responsible for establishing and managing private equity investment funds with USD 100 million under management and advising on mergers and acquisition transactions, including acquisition financing.  He also led and was a team member on several principal investments with high performance.

Prior to joining Mirae Asset, Mr. Cho was a Senior Accountant with Deloitte, where he provided financial advisory services to Korean and Japanese companies investing in Korea. 

His considerable client engagement experience included advisory services for Mitsubishi Corporation, Nikon, LS Group, Heungkuk Life Insurance and Taekwang Group.

Mr. Cho holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Korea University and he had worked for Hana Finance in Hong Kong before he started his career.

Cindy Stark

Managing Partner

Cindy Stark is the Managing Partner of Corstone and a Certified Private Equity Professional (CPEP). She oversees the firm’s business and investment strategy, including the evaluation of new opportunities and the strategic growth of Corstone’s subsidiaries, TalentPro and Astra HR. Working closely with their leadership teams, she helps drive innovation, business development, and long-term value creation.

Ms. Stark brings an extensive background in human resources, followed by leadership experience in recruitment, healthcare, and financial services. Over the course of her career, she has held senior positions including Vice President of Sales and Project Development Manager. She is recognized for her expertise in start-ups and turnarounds, partnering with CEOs and Presidents to launch new ventures and successfully scale companies.

Dedicated to community and philanthropy, Ms. Stark has been actively involved with the Lombardi Cancer Center and Neediest Kids. In 2024, she co-chaired the Lombardi Cancer Gala alongside her partner, Albert “Bud” Hawk, helping raise more than $1.2 million to support cancer research and patient care. She has also represented Corstone in collaborations with numerous political, civic, and charitable organizations.

Outside of her professional and philanthropic work, Ms. Stark has been married to her husband since their college years, and together they are raising two wonderful children.

Duke Chung

Senior Managing Director

Duke Chung is a Senior Managing Director of Corstone Asia. Mr. Chung is responsible for investment activities in the Asia region.

Prior to joining Corstone, Mr. Chung was an investment banker leading execution activities of M&A and capital market transactions in Korea, at The Royal Bank of Scotland, Deutsche Bank, CIMB, and Macquarie. Prior to investment banking, Mr. Chung was a researcher at Samjong KPMG Economic Research Institute.

Mr. Chung received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business and Administration from Yonsei University.

Jin Park

Senior Managing Director

Jin Park is a Senior Managing Director of Corstone Asia. Mr. Park is responsible for investment activities in the Asia region.

Prior to joining Corstone, Mr. Park was an Assistant Manager for the Investment Banking Division of Mirae Asset Securities in Korea. During his tenure, Mr. Park was involved in various IPO projects such as Crutial tech, KNN, Robostar, Iljin Materials etc.

In private equity experience he was involved in establishing and managing USD 50million size mezzanine fund and managing many other Mirae Asset PEFs.

Mr. Park holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management from University of Hull UK.

John Herring

Co-Founder Emeritus

John is a founding Corstone partner and has served alternatively as managing director or as CEO of Corstone portfolio companies. His career spans military service to public company executive positions. He is experienced with venture, private equity and public market financings and successfully led businesses to M&A transactions and publicly listed entities. John returns to Corstone as a managing director in 2014.

Most recently, John led iMove Inc. to advance a new generation of ground-based imaging solutions to combat terrorism. He attracted In-Q-Tel, the investment arm of the CIA and fast tracked deployment of new technologies solutions that have since been recognized by the Directors of DNI and CIA for saving the lives of intelligence officers and warfighters. iMove was acquired by Immersive Media in December 2013.

Previously, Corstone teamed with former McCaw Cellular executives to develop a new generation mobile satellite data service. John served as CEO of Norcom Networks during which time ground station operations were established; mobile terminals developed for in-vehicle communications; and major customers were signed including Sears, Union Pacific and a host of major utilities. While private, John attracted Telenor AS, the Norwegian telecom as a strategic partner who invested $50 million in the venture. Norcom was acquired by Wireless Matrix Corporation, a publicly listed company.

John led Corstone’s acquisition of and served as CEO of LaserAccess Corporation, a company involved in imaging solutions and text-retrieval algorithms for banking applications. During his tenure, the product was brought to market, gained rapid market share and was subsequently acquired by Network Imaging Corporation, a publicly listed company.

Prior to Corstone, John worked for DBA Systems, an image and mapping contractor for the national intelligence community, and served as an officer in the Navy nuclear submarine program. He received his MBA in Finance and Investments from George Washington University and his BS in Business from The Citadel.

John Duffy

Senior Advisor, Real Estate

John E. Duffy is the Executive Managing Director at Jones Lang LaSalle in Washington, D.C. Mr. Duffy has over twenty-five years of experience in the key disciplines associated with the commercial real estate industry.

Mr. Duffy’s background includes extensive experience as a land use planner (comprehensive planning, zoning, architectural compliance), real estate developer (entitlement, architectural and engineering oversight, project financing, leasing, and disposition), real estate investor for his own account (joint venture office, retail and residential projects) and as a capital markets intermediary.

Prior to forming Sage Cap, Mr. Duffy co-managed HFF’s DC office as Senior Managing Director for 15 years where he was instrumental in building a capital markets team that successfully completed over $20 billion in total capitalization.

These transactions included joint ventures on new construction, recapitalizations, investment sales, structured finance, construction loans, and permanent financings. He has a B.S. in Urban Planning from Virginia Tech and a Masters in Urban Planning from the University of Virginia. He is a full member of ULI.

As Sage Capital Advisors Managing Principal, Mr. Duffy has been instrumental in guiding the firm to completing over $1.7 billion in total capitalizations since January of 2013. The firm is currently marketing America’s Square, which is a 461,484 square foot trophy asset estimated to trade for approximately $500,000,000.

Sage is also in the process of finalizing a $250,000,000 programmatic joint venture between a global investment fund and the largest developer/investor in the Washington, DC region.

Haiching Zhao

Managing Director

Haiching Zhao is a Managing Director of Corstone, and Dr. Zhao holds a Ph. D. in biochemistry and molecular biology.  From 1988 to 1993, he conducted postdoctoral research at Harvard University and also held a teaching position at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

He has been actively involved in US Democratic politics since the early 1990’s.  Over the years, he has worked with key Congressional, Senate and White House leaders on various China issues.  He is currently a special advisor on China policy   to a distinguished Congressional leader.

Dr. Zhao entered the private sector in the mid-1990’s, focusing on financial investment and international trade.  From 1997 to 1999, he served on the Fannie Mae Advisory Board. 

He has more than 10 years of senior experience in the residential and commercial mortgage banking business including mortgage origination, underwriting and mortgage backed securities in the secondary market.  In addition to his Corstone activities, Dr. Zhao serves as President of  Ocean Capital Group, a real estate investment and financing firm based in Washington, DC.

Laurie Rice

Manager/Assistant to the Chairman

Laurie Rice is the Assistant to the Chairman and was part of the founding team of Corstone in 1993. She is responsible for administrative, financial, corporate compliance as well as office management activities for the company.

Prior to joining Corstone, Ms. Rice served as Assistant to the General Counsel for a publicly traded company, assisting with shareholder/investor relations and corporate secretary duties. She was a legal secretary, with a strong background in bankruptcy, corporate and energy practices.

Ms. Rice received a bachelor’s degree from the American University.

Corey Hawk

Managing Director

Corey Hawk is a Managing Director at Corstone.

Corey oversees investment activities in Asia, North America, Europe, and Latin America. He also provides revenue growth services to Corstone portfolio companies and manages its early stage investments.

He has overseen investments in franchises, consumer electronics, energy, retail, sports betting, IT infrastructure, social technologies, fine dining, gaming, and hardware/software products.

Corey is the Founder of Accipital, an investment partner of Corstone. He is also the Co-Founder of Top Line Flow, a sales acceleration technology platform.

Prior to joining Corstone, Corey worked as an M&A Consultant within the Strategy & Operations practice at Deloitte Consulting, primarily covering the financial services and telecommunications industries. Previously he led the manufacturing outsourcing efforts in China for a composites manufacturer headquartered in the US.

Corey holds an MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in finance, economics, and psychology from Washington University in St. Louis. During his time at Booth, Corey worked for two US based private equity firms focusing on deals within consumer goods, information technology, and telecommunications.

Sungyong Chae

Compliance Officer

Sungyong Chae is a compliance officer at Corstone Asia. He is responsible for ensuring Corstone Asia complies with its regulatory requirements and internal policies.

Prior to Corstone Asia, Mr. Chae worked at a couple of leading law firms including Bae, Kim & Lee LLC, Dongin Law Group, etc., representing a variety of corporations and multinational companies in domestic and cross-border M&A transactions as well as handling bankruptcy and corporate restructuring matters, and shareholder disputes.

On the business side, he also has plenty of experiences in finance and investment by leading his own investment team at an asset management company where he formed both domestic and international funds and led a variety of transactions including buy-outs, pre-IPO financing and venture capital deals.

Through his experience as both investor and attorney, Mr. Chae is able to provide practical advice related to the legal and business issues faced by his fund clients.

Mr. Chae holds a LL.M. from Georgetown University Law Center and bachelor’s degree in laws from Seoul National University.

Sangmin Yun

Vice President

Sangmin Yun is a vice president at Corstone Asia, where he is responsible for originating and executing private equity investments across the Asia-Pacific region. Prior to joining Corstone, Mr. Yun worked at NH Investment & Securities, where he primarily provided M&A advisory services. He also worked at both PwC and KPMG, where he contributed to numerous financial transactions, specifically in the areas of financial due diligence and valuation services. Mr. Yun is a Certified Public Accountant (KICPA). Mr. Yun holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Chinese Culture from Sogang University.

Jisu Jeon

Associate

Jisu Jeon is an associate at Corstone Asia, where he is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and executing private equity investments across the Asia-Pacific region. Prior to joining Corstone, Mr. Jeon was with Lazard Korea, where he worked on M&A-related initiatives. He also worked at Corio Generation, a Macquarie Group portfolio company, where he focused on M&A activities for offshore wind projects in Korea and the United Kingdom. A Certified Public Accountant (KICPA), Mr. Jeon began his career at KPMG Korea, advising clients on M&A and valuation engagements. Mr. Jeon holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Seoul National University.

Donghyun Iea

Senior Associate

Donghyun Iea is a senior associate at Corstone Asia, where he is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and executing private equity investments across the Asia-Pacific region. Prior to joining Corstone, he was with LK Investment Partners, where he focused on growth equity and portfolio management, including Onestore, Autostay, and LK Samyang, etc. He began his career at KPMG, advising clients on M&A and valuation engagements. Mr. Iea holds a B.A. in Global Business Administration from Sungkyunkwan University and a B.S. in Finance from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University.

Soyeon Jeon

Analyst

Soyeon Jeon is an analyst at Corstone Asia. She is responsible for supporting investment and management administrative activities for the company. Ms. Jeon holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration and Economics from Seoul Women’s University.

Heejung Yang

Chief Risk Officer

Heejung Yang is the Chief Risk Officer. Ms. Yang is responsible for risk management and compliance review.

Prior to joining Corstone, Ms. Yang worked as a senior manager for KB Asset Management, where she oversaw risk management for diverse portfolios of alternative investments.

She also worked as a Manager for Savills Korea, where she performed real estate fund management and budgeting.

Prior to working at Savills, Ms. Yang was a senior accountant at Deloitte, where she conducted audits and provided financial advisory services to Korean companies.
Ms. Yang holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Korea University and KICPA (Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants) license.

Hyeryeong Hwang

Associate

Hyeryeong Hwang is an Associate in Corstone Asia. She is responsible for supporting investment and management administrative activities for the company.

Prior to joining Corstone, Ms. Hwang was the Assistant Manager of the Management Department at APC Private Equity. She has experience supporting investment and management.
Ms. Hwang holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Inha university.

Hyejin Choi

Associate

Hyejin Choi is an Assistant Manager in Corstone Asia. She is responsible for supporting investment and administrative activities for the company.

Prior to joining Corstone, Hyejin was the staff of Management Team at Thepublic Asset Management. She has experience supporting investment and administrative activities.
Hyejin holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Sungkyul university.