Lee Kun-hee, the Samsung chairman who transformed the company into one of the largest business empires, has died today at the age of 78 years, according to the reports from the South Korean leading news agency Yonhap.
The story of Samsung is related to its home country history, which is sometimes called “The Republic of Samsung.” Samsung spread its initiatives in several areas under his management, like memory chips, displays, semiconductors, and other components that are the backbone of today’s digital devices.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/23022029@N08/The Samsung chairman solved the challenging economic troubles of the 1990s, including the Asian crisis of 1998, in which there was a collapse of South Korea and many other so-called Asian Tigers, including the Dot-Com Bubble, in which the stocks of the internet fell globally.
After coming out of these challenging years, Lee invested in building the conglomerate’s Galaxy consumer smartphone line. It evolved Samsung from an industrial powerhouse to a worldwide brand. Samsung electronics is just one of the spider web of Samsung companies. Today, its net worth is around $350 billion, making it among the world’s most valuable countries.
Lee faced troubles in recent years. He did tax evasion in the early 2000s. However, the country’s President, Lee Myung-bak, pardoned him.
Samsung has also been under gunfire from several groups, including Elliot Management, over Lee’s attempt to secure the financial future of his son, Lee Jae-yong. He took the leadership of the conglomerate after the elder Lee’s heart attack in 2014. Lee Jae-yong has suffered his own problems with the law. He also became guilty of bribery. He got the sentence of prison for five years, which a judge suspended.
This is another terrible news after the Samsung Vice-chairman was suspected of bribery. Following his heart attack, Lee Kun-hee remained in stable condition, according to Yonhap. The rumors of his condition have participated in the six years.
Bloomberg has reported that Lee has left $20 billion in wealth, and he is the wealthiest South Korean citizen. He has a wife and four children.
