[SUPER RICH] Lotte founder no stranger to fraternal feud

Lotte founder and general chairman Shin Kyuk-ho became both the protagonist and antagonist of a soap opera-ish family feud since July 27 when he tried to oust his second son from his business empire but instead was kicked out himself and became powerless. The family secrets and anecdotes revealed by his eldest son Shin Dong-joo in media interviews last week  portray the 93-year-old as the “king” of the Lotte empire -- someone who can still slap his 60-year-old son, fire any top executive with th

Aug. 4, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Top 3 chaebol families hold landmarks in Gangnam

Samsung, Hyundai Motor and Lotte, the top three chaebol of South Korea, possess landmarks in Gangnam, the most expensive area in the country. Here is a look at the size and scope of their properties.Hyundai Motor Group: Global Business Center Hyundai Motor Group chairman Chung Mong-kooHyundai Motor Group purchased the former 79,431 square meter KEPCO property located in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, for 10.5 trillion won last year, and will have full ownership of the property this September. The co

July 28, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Shin Dong-bin gains complete control of Lotte, both in Korea, Japan

At the age of 60, Lotte Korea chairman Shin Dong-bin finally achieved his desire of getting a full grip of Lotte in Japan. Lotte Holdings of Japan announced last Thursday that the board of directors unanimously agreed to name him the company’s president. Now Lotte Holdings has three presidents -- Shin Dong-bin, his father and Lotte founder Shin Kyuk-ho and Japanese CEO Tsukuda Takayuki. But there is little doubt that Shin has overall control of the firm. In March, Tsukuda was seen “bowing polite

July 21, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Superrich aid protection of endangered animals

The world’s wildlife is under threat. The Worldwide Fund for Nature’s Living Planet Index, which monitors populations of over 3,000 vertebrates, has decreased 52 percent over the last 40 years, and a report in the journal Nature in December found that 26 percent of mammals had become endangered.Many countries and animal organizations strive to conserve animals, and the immense financial backing of billionaires can have a huge impact on their efforts.These superrich are at the forefront of protec

July 21, 2015

‘Asia’s tech hub will be rich, relevant and cool’

Tim Chae, venture partner of 500 Kimchi, speaks during an interview with The Korea Herald at the fund's office in Google's Campus Seoul in southern Seoul last week. Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald    Silicon Valley entrepreneur Tim Chae is betting -- $15 million, to be precise -- that in the next 3-5 years, Korea will be the Silicon Valley of Asia. And he says so because it’s the only country in the continent that meets the tech hub trifecta of being rich, relevant and cool.　　A decade after immig

July 15, 2015

[SUPER RICH] South Cape Spa & Suite attracts superrich around the world

The South Cape Spa & Suite, located in Namhae, South Gyeongsang province, is a constant temptation for golf enthusiasts who dream of golfing every time they look at a patch of grass.South Cape has become one of Korea’s representative golf resorts just two years from its establishment in 2013, becoming a must-see for foreign visitors and being listed as one of “Korea’s best golf courses” in various golf magazines.A total of about 400 billion won ($350 million) was invested to build the golf resor

July 14, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Korea’s super start-ups

As the world is seeing a venture boom, there have been a few Korean start-ups rising to the top. These start-ups have brought traditionally off-line markets to mobile and changed the course of their respective industries, receiving both global attention and funding.Kakao TaxiKim Beom-su, president of Daum KakaoKim Beom-su, president of Daum Kakao, was ranked No. 11 on the Forbes list of Korea’s 50 richest people this year.After his success with mobile messenger app KakaoTalk, Kim is set on shaki

July 7, 2015

[SUPER RICH] SPC chief’s sons come to the fore

The two sons of SPC chairman Hur Young-in are assuming bigger roles in management as the Korean food giant is aggressively expanding its business at home and abroad.In what pundits view as preparations for a transfer of management, the elder son Jin-su and second son Hee-su were registered in May as non-executive board members of its flagship and only stock market-listed affiliated, Samlip Food Corp. The 4 trillion-won ($3.6 billion) food behemoth has 12 brands, including Paris Baguette and Pari

June 30, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Creative, open office spaces of tech giants

Famous tech companies both domestically and abroad are clamoring to create open and creative office environments for their employees, believing that having an enjoyable working environment is a crucial factor in becoming a world-class company.Naver“Green Library” inside Naver headquarters in Bundang, Gyeonggi provinceGiant Web portal Naver moved its headquarters to Bundang, Gyeonggi Province in 2010.The Naver headquarters, nicknamed the Green Factory, is 27 stories high with eight additional und

June 30, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Korean cosmetics guru eyes young consumers to gain momentum

Charmzone chairman Kim Kwang-seok has returned to what he is good at: Making face cream.His skincare company -- once the dominant player in the Korean cosmetics market -- is seeking to get back on track with its newly launched antiaging cream. Charmzone chairman Kim Kwang-seok (Charmzone)“Cosmetics has become a daily necessity. I will start from the beginning to regain lost time and consumers,” the pharmacist-turned-entrepreneur said in an interview with The Korea Herald. The 31-year-old company

June 23, 2015

[SUPER RICH] News aggregators who rose to prominence

News aggregation sites are on the rise.These websites don’t produce much original content, instead bringing in famous columnists or aggregate preexisting news and add videos or photos to the story.News aggregating websites have grown in the past few years, and have been sold for enormous sums or attracted large-scale investments.Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post (Bloomberg)Arianna Huffington – The Huffington PostThe Huffington Post is one of the first media companies to introduc

June 23, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Ex-Jinro chairman’s death reflects honor and disgrace of Korean conglomerates

Prosecutors on Monday confirmed the death of former Jinro Group chairman Jang Jin-ho, and officially ceased the arraignment process on him over four suspected irregularities. The announcement of the death of the father of the nation’s best-selling Cass beer and Chamisul soju came more than a month after his funeral was held in Beijing and his bereaved family set up a small mourning place in Asan Medical Center in Seoul.Investigators said that because the surviving family did not register his dea

June 16, 2015

[SUPER RICH] BridgeCrest Medical helps fight disease with big data

Amid the Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak, a Korean technology company won much public support by creating and distributing a “MERS map” before the government did.Nathan Klarer, founder and CEO of start-up BridgeCrest Medical, did something similar last year by presenting an Ebola map when the United States was facing an Ebola scare.Ebola, which had been spreading in West Africa, led to a scare in the United States when a patient in Texas died from it and two nurses who were treating hi

June 16, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Brand names each tell their own story

Every company has a brand, and those identities are not made in haste as they are expected to be mentioned by the public for decades to come.Most of the brands have a story behind their names, be it a reflection of their business, a desire to succeed, or an inspiration from myth and literature.Denmark’s Lego is derived from “leg godt,” meaning “play well” in Danish. True to its name, Lego is currently one of the most successful toy companies in the world. According to Brand Finance, the Lego bra

June 9, 2015

[SUPER RICH] TonyMoly chairman, rising superrich candidate with IPO plan

2015 will be a milestone year for budget cosmetics-maker TonyMoly chairman Bae Hae-dong. The company, ranked fourth in the segment last year, is finally going public in July. A meeting with investors was held in Shanghai on Monday. “Major Chinese investors reside in Shanghai and we thought this was the right time to explain the company’s vision and prospects,” a Daewoo Securities official who leads TonyMoly’s stock-listing plan was quoted as saying to a local newspaper. If all goes to plan, the

June 9, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Lee Jay-yong consolidates hold on Samsung

The stock market went frantic. Business analysts were excited. News of the merger between Cheil Industries and Samsung C&T ― two main pillars of Samsung Group ― revved up the business world through last week.But as time passed, the victor of the merger between a fashion-chemical company and construction-trading firm became very clear. According to news reports, Samsung Group vice chairman Lee Jay-yong saw his wealth increase by around 1 trillion won ($897 million) within a week, given his 23.23

June 2, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Demographics of East Asian superrich

In East Asia, the middle-aged and elderly superrich run the show.Forbes recorded 358 billionaires in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea combined, and most were middle-aged and elderly in their 40s to 70s, with differing rates of self-made billionaires and heirs.ChinaForbes recorded 221 billionaires in mainland China with their collective assets worth $773.3 billion. Of them, 96 superrich were in their 50s with collective assets of $285.6 billion, led by 51-year-old Jack Ma ― founder

June 2, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Jack Ma enters Korean market to expand Alibaba empire

Jack Ma, the chairman and founder of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. who holds assets worth $36.4 billion, visited South Korea for the third time on May 17 to announce the launch of the Korea Pavilion on T-Mall, a business-to-consumer online retail channel.T-Mall is a profitable business for Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., with gross merchandise volume of 763 billion yuan (about $123 billion) last year.The Korea Pavilion, which opened May 18, deals with Korean retail items. The decision stems from the po

May 26, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Kumho Asiana chief in last-minute takeover talks

Kumho Asiana chairman Park Sam-koo is making a last-ditch effort to bring former affiliates back together with the acquisitions of Kumho Buslines and Kumho Industrial. The 70-year-old Park is in final negotiations with a private equity fund jointly run by IBK Securities and KStone Partners, which hold a 100 percent stake in Kumho Buslines, to retake the intercity bus transportation unit, according to sources on Tuesday.“The two sides are bargaining over the price and an extension of the payment

May 26, 2015

[SUPER RICH] Koo Kwang-mo steps closer to LG inheritance

Koo Kwang-mo, son of LG Group chairman Koo Bon-moo, emerged as the heir-apparent of the 71.2 trillion won ($71 billion) conglomerate this week as it was revealed that he owns the largest number of company shares among contenders. Although he is the biological child of Heesung Group chairman Koo Bon-neung ― younger brother of Bon-moo ― he was adopted in order to inherit the group’s management. The LG founding clan has a strict patriarchal inheritance structure, granting exclusive rights to eldest

May 19, 2015