South Korean corporate magnates getting younger in generational shift

[Kim Dong-kwan, Chung Ki-sun, Shin Yoo-yeol, Lee Sun-ho]

South Korea’s four largest conglomerates are now under the command of the third- to fourth-generation leaders of the founding family after Jay Y. Lee finally took up the title as the executive chairman on Thursday.

Lee, 54, was formally named the chair two years after Samsung’s patriarch Lee Kun-hee died and 10 years since he served as the vice chair. Among the four major magnates, he makes the second oldest after 62-year-old Chey Tae-won of SK Group.

Hyundai Motor Group’s Chung Euisun, 52, ascended to the top command in Oct. 2020.

The youngest of the four tycoons is LG’s Koo Kwang-mo, 44, who took the helm in June 2018 earlier than expected from the death of Chairman Koo Bon-moo.

The younger Koo is the only fourth-generation leader in the top four groups.

Beyond the top four, Park Jung-won of 16th largest Doosan Group is also a fourth descent of the founding family.

The four younger chiefs privately meet often unlike their fathers who kept distance to one another.

Chey, the eldest and the head of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, usually takes lead in private gatherings. Lee, Chey, and Koo attended the wedding ceremony of Chung’s oldest daughter in June.

The leadership of Korean family-own corporate dynasties is set to get younger.

Kim Dong-kwan, 42, vice chairman of Hanwha Solutions, and the eldest of three sons of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, has been in the waiting to succeed the helm.

The younger Kim was promoted to vice chair in August, two years after he became president. He heads Hanwha Aerospace, the group’s aerospace and defense unit that has been flying by drawing multibillion-dollar orders from Poland.

Chung Ki-sun, eldest son of Asan Foundation Chairman Chung Mong-joon was named president of HD Hyundai this year at the age of 40. The younger Chung is expected to take more active part in management of the top shipwright currently under Kwon Oh-gap as group chairman and Ka Sam-hyun, vice chairman of Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering.

Shin Yoo-yeol, eldest son of Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, 36, became an executive of Lotte Chemical Japan this year. He came out by accompanying his father in business trip to Vietnam in August. The younger Shin had kept in veil until then. He studied business management at Columbia University in the United States and worked for Nomura Securities just as his father.

Lee Sun-ho, the eldest son of CJ Group Chair Lee Jay-hyun, was named recently as head of food growth promotion team. Lee became an executive last year and is taking up more responsibility in management as heir in grooming.

[ⓒ Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]