Richest Person In South Korea: Samsung's Lee Kun-Hee's Net Worth Is $17 Billion

The richest person in South Korea is Samsung Group’s Lee Kun-Hee with $17 billion net worth.

Trailing him in the money rankings game is Celltrion’s Seo Jung-jin with $7.4 billion and Nexon’s Kim Jung-ju with $6.3 billion. Also making the top five is Samsung Electronics’ Jay Y. Lee, the eldest child of Lee Kun-Hee, and Mong-Koo Chung of Hyundai Motors.

Lee is the chairman of Samsung Electronics. Under his watch, the company grew to one of the biggest producers of semiconductors and consumer electronics in the world. Now, Samsung has become synonymous to smartphones, flat screen TV and advanced technology, and it has even expanded to fashion and theme parks. The company recorded $197.8 billion revenue in 2019 and was responsible for about 15 percent of South Korea’s Gross Domestic Product.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, the Uiryeong, South Korea native received his education at Waseda University in Japan and George Washington University. Lee Kun-Hee’s grandfather, Lee Byung-Chull, started the Samsung Group and gave family members, as well as their spouses, key positions. On the other hand, Lee Hun-Kee’s two daughters Lee Boo-jin and Lee Seo-hyun are placed in leading Hotel Shilla and Samsung Welfare Foundation, respectively.

Being the head of one of the largest electronics companies in the world is no easy feat and Lee had his fair share of controversies such as the 2018 "Slush Fund Scandal," corruption allegations and anti-union policies. South Korean family businesses, or locally known as Chaebol, are often rocked by scandals involving sibling feuds, corruptions and influence peddling. Lee’s son Jay Y. Lee was jailed on bribery charges but was released after a year.

The 78-year-old survived a heart attack in 2014 but remains unconscious up to this day. He is married to Hong Ra-Hee, who owns 0.8 percent of Samsung Electronics. Hong Ra-Hee heads the Samsung Museum of Art and she is known as one of the country’s prominent art collectors.

Lee Hun-Kee is also a majority owner of Samsung Life Insurance and Samsung C&T holding company. He reportedly lives in a $10 million mansion in Seoul. The CEO is also a member of the International Olympic Committee and his work paved the way in bringing the 2018 Olympics to South Korea.

Despite the increased pressure from rivals Apple and Huawei, Samsung has managed to sell more smartphone units in the latter part of 2019. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 is set to be released in August or September 2020.