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Lee Jae-yong, Samsung’s heir and de facto leader of the conglomerate, officially becomes president of Samsung Electronics. A highly symbolic title which materializes his return to business after having benefited from the presidential pardon last August after being convicted of corruption. An appointment that comes in a complicated economic context for Samsung Electronics.
With our correspondent in Seoul, Nicolas Rocca
At 54, Lee Jae-yong officially takes over the business created by his grandfather and transformed into a global empire by his father. The third of the Lee dynasty had effectively run the conglomerate since 2014, but his legal disputes had prevented him from officially acceding to the function.
The Board of Directors of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today approved the appointment of Jay Y. Lee as Executive Chairman of the companyhttps://t.co/ieOPZPE9tb
— Samsung Electronics (@Samsung) October 27, 2022
Sentenced in 2017 for corrupting ex-president Park in order for it to guarantee its control over the group, he was imprisoned in 2017 and then again in 2021. This return to grace has been skilfully thought out for two years, with first a release on bail, then a presidential pardon last August. Lee Jae-yong has taken care of his communication for many months in order to seduce South Korean public opinion, especially the youngest.
► Read also: South Korea: imprisoned ex-president Park Geun-hye pardoned
For Samsung Electronics, one of the market leaders in smartphones and memory chips, the objective of this appointment is to revive itself in a complicated period. The company is suffering from the negative effects of the war in Ukraine, the rise in interest rates by central banks and the trade dispute between Beijing and Washington. In September, Samsung Electronics even saw a drop in its quarterly results for the first time in three years.