Samsung heir offers rare apology, wont pass company control to children

The heir-apparent to the Samsung Group, Jay Y. Lee, has apologized for his role in a succession plot that resulted in a bribery conviction, and for executives caught sabotaging attempts to organize labor at the company. Lee, the only son of the incapacitated Chairman Lee Kun-hee and grandson of founder Lee Byung-chull, also pledged that he would not pass control of the Korean dynasty to his children.

Until today, two things were thought to be true about Samsung: it doesn’t apologize unless things explode, and company control is a birthright of the Lee family. The break in tradition was an historic moment for the chaebol that got its start as a small grocery store in the 1930s, before rising to become a major international force...

Continue reading…