SEOUL (THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - K-pop group Exo were crowned South Korea's top celebrities this year by weekly magazine Forbes Korea on Tuesday.

The 10-member group, who debuted only three years ago, topped the list of Korea's 40 most powerful celebrities in 2015 ranked by the business magazine, outshining other established actors, singers and sports stars.

The boys first entered the rankings last year, claiming No.5.

A-list actors Kim Soo Hyun and Gianna Jun, who rose to prominence across Asia with the hit drama My Love From The Star, were No. 2 and No. 4 this year, respectively. Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yu Na came in third.

Among the top 10 were rhythmic gymnast Son Yeon Jae, singer-turned-actor Lee Seung Gi, baseball player Ryu Hyun Jin, soccer player Son Heung Min, girl bands Girls' Generation and Sistar.

Since 2009, Forbes Korea has selected Korea's top 40 celebrities based on their income, television appearances, expertise and media coverage.

Exo had a successful year in 2014 -- despite the abrupt exit of two Chinese members Kris and Luhan -- dominating year-end music awards by winning major prizes with their five-track EP Overdose.

The boys will return to the music scene soon. Some of their new tracks will be unveiled at their upcoming concerts to be held in Seoul on March 7-8 and 13-15.