Samsung Electronics chairman, Lee Kun-hee has reportedly passed away 78. Lee is a notable figure for his immense influence on the Samsung group. Following his passing news, the worlds’ eyes are now latched onto the future of Samsung.
Lee Kun-hee: the journey in expanding Samsung
Lee Kun-hee led Samsung as the chairman from 1987 to 2008 and continued it from 2010 to 2020. He has put a lot of efforts and sacrifice Lee put on. Hence, it is not too much to say the Lee plays the biggest role in Samsung’s success.
It all started in 1997. Noted from Reuters, Lee’s pent up frustration over the company’s static state led to a strategic shift in Samsung: to focus on quality, not quantity. Lee managed to grow his father’s noodle trading business into a huge business empire. As of May 2020, Samsung’s worth values at 424 trillion won ($375 billion). The company also owns affiliates ranging from electronics, insurance, shipbuilding and construction.
Lee Kun-hee is an eminent businessman in South Korea. As South Korea’s richest person, his net worth values at $20.9 billion. Furthermore, Reuters noted Lee, as Samsung Electronic’s biggest individual shareholder, owns 4.18% at stake and 20.76$ of the insurance firm.
Derived from Reuters, Samsung sent its last condolence for the passing Lee through a statement. “Chairman Lee was a true visionary who transformed Samsung into the world-leading innovator and industrial powerhouse from a local business,” it says.
Family feud sparks talks on potential restructuring in Samsung
Family feud is becoming a concern in Samsung‘s future. Lee’s three children have been in a feud over the split of wealth, a common issues in chaebols-term for blue blood in Korean. A lot of investors eyes’ have taken an interest in the issue, as it might lead into a restructuring of the group. Samsung companies’ involving Lee’s stakes such as Samsung Life and Samsung Electronics are expectedly the ones to be most affected by this.
Park Sang-in, a professor at Seoul National University commented, “it has been six years since Lee was hospitalised, so if there is a consensus among the children, Samsung will go through an orderly succession”. “With Lee’s death, Samsung now faces greater uncertainty over the inheritance,” he continued.
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