Grandson of Samsung’s founder takes management of empire as earnings fall

Samsung Electronics has appointed Lee Jae-yong — who is understood within the West as Jay Y. Lee — as its govt chairman, giving the grandson of the corporate’s founder formal management, the South Korean tech giant announced today. The announcement got here on the identical day that Samsung introduced a collection of disappointing earnings results, as earnings fell 23 p.c in comparison with the earlier quarter.

According to Samsung’s official announcement justifying the appointment, “the Board cited the current uncertain global business environment and the pressing need for stronger accountability and business stability in approving the recommendation.” Samsung is presently battling a droop in demand for a number of of its key companies together with reminiscence chips, cell phones, and TVs. It doesn’t count on demand to select again up till the second half of next year.

Lee’s ascension is unlikely to alter a lot for the corporate within the brief time period, Bloomberg notes, given he’s lengthy served as Samsung’s de-facto chief. But formally taking management means Lee can take larger strategic choices to steer the corporate by means of a turbulent financial interval, together with pushing by means of acquisitions, mergers, and funneling funding into rising applied sciences.

54-year outdated Lee succeeds his father, Lee Kun-hee, as head of South Korea’s largest firm following his demise in October 2020. Lee Kun-hee had been incapacitated for years after struggling a coronary heart assault in 2014. The youthful Lee had been embroiled in a corruption and bribery scandal since 2017, and been despatched to jail twice. Lee was given a presidential pardon in August this yr, paving the way in which for him to take formal management of the electronics large. The pardon was paying homage to the 2 given to Lee’s father, who was convicted of corruption and tax evasion in 1996 and 2008.

“Without a doubt, we are at a pivotal moment,” Lee stated in an announcement reported by Bloomberg. “Now is the time to plan our next move. Now is the time to act, to be bold and unwavering in our focus.”