LEE JAE-YONG

South Korea's justice minister said the pardons of business tycoons were aimed at "overcoming the economic crisis through encouraging business."

The move, which has overwhelming public support in South Korea, allows Jay Y. Lee to formally resume control of the conglomerate.

Samsung’s de-facto leader has secured a pardon of his conviction for bribing a former president in a corruption scandal that toppled a previous South Korean government.

President Joe Biden is visiting a South Korean computer chip factory that is the model for a similar plant to be built in Texas.

Lee, called Korea's "princeling," was charged for illegally using the anesthetic propofol, popular with K-pop stars.

Samsung leader Lee Jae-yong walked out of prison a year early in a parole decision demonstrating the conglomerate’s outsized influence in South Korea as well as continuing leniency for bosses who commit corporate corruption.

A day before he is released on parole, Samsung scion Lee Jae-yong has appeared in a South Korean court for another trial.

South Korea says it will release billionaire Samsung scion Lee Jae-yong on parole this week after he spent 18 months in prison for his role in a massive corruption scandal that triggered nationwide protests and led to the ouster of the country’s previous president.

South Korea will release billionaire Samsung scion Lee Jae-yong on parole this week after he spent 18 months in prison for his role in a massive corruption scandal that triggered nationwide protests and led to the ouster of the country’s previous president. The announcement Monday by the Justice Ministry, which came with a year left on Lee’s 30-month sentence, extends a history of leniency toward major white-collar crime and preferential treatment for convicted tycoons. It tarnishes the reformist image of President Moon Jae-in, who after winning a presidential by-election in 2017 vowed to curb the excesses of “chaebol,” South Korea’s family-owned conglomerates, and end their cozy ties with the government.

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong is in prison for a corruption scandal but many in South Korea want him free to run the company.

Pressure is mounting on South Korean President Moon Jae-in to pardon Samsung heir Lee Jae-yong now that he has spent nearly four months in prison after his conviction in a massive corruption scandal.

Samsung Electronics says its operating profit for the last quarter jumped 46% from a year earlier driven by increased sales of smartphones and televisions as its business continues to flourish amid the pandemic.

Samsung Electronics said Thursday its operating profit for the last quarter jumped 46% from a year earlier driven by increased sales of smartphones and televisions as its business continues to flourish amid the pandemic. The company’s operating profit of 9.38 trillion won ($8.5 billion) would have been higher it not for an underperforming semiconductor business, which was impacted by a storm-related shutdown at its chip plant in Austin in February and declining prices of NAND memory chips. Samsung said it expects its chip business to rebound in the current quarter, driven by stronger demands in servers and a resumption of full operations at its Austin plant.

A woman passes by an advertisement of Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S21 Series smartphones at its shop in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021. Samsung’s operating profit of 9.1 trillion won ($8.1 billion) for the October-December quarter represented a 26.4% increase from the same period a year before, while its revenue rose by 2.8% to 61.6 trillion won ($55.3 billion). The company’s operating profit for the full year of 2020 was at 36 trillion won ($32.3 billion), rising by more than 29% from 2019, according to a regulatory filing. Samsung saw its semiconductor business rebounded sharply last year after a sluggish 2019, driven by robust demand for PCs and servers as virus outbreaks forced millions of people to stay and work at home. PC demand remained strong, driven by Chromebooks, gaming notebooks and the release of new graphics cards and gaming consoles, the company said.

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong arrives at the Seoul High Court in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. Samsung scion Lee will not appeal a court ruling that sentenced him to two and a half years in prison for bribing South Korea's then-president for business favors. But after mulling his options, Lee decided to “humbly accept” the High Court’s decision, his head attorney Injae Lee said. Prosecutors had sought a prison term of 9 years for Lee Jae-yong. It’s not immediately clear what his prison term would mean for Samsung's business.

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong arrives at the Seoul High Court in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. South Korean court sentences Lee to 2 and a half years in prison over corruption case. Samsung didn’t issue a statement over the ruling. Lee Jae-yong helms the Samsung group in his capacity as vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, one of the world’s largest makers of computer chips and smartphones. It isn’t immediately clear what his prison term would mean for Samsung.

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is questioned by a reporter upon arrival at the Seoul High Court in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2020. South Korean prosecutors on Wednesday requested a nine-year prison term for Samsungs de facto chief, Lee, during a retrial of his bribery charges. A team of prosecutors led by independent counsel Park Young-soo demanded the Seoul High Court sentence Lee to prison. Last year, the Supreme Court returned the case to the high court, ruling that the amount of Lee’s bribes had been undervalued. The Seoul High Court is to issue a ruling on Jan. 18, according to South Korean media reports.

FILE - In this June 8, 2020 file photo, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong arrives at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, South Korea. As Samsung Electronics mourns the death of its long-time chairman, Lee Kun-Hee, questions loom over what's next for South Korea's biggest company. The most crucial long-term question for Samsung is if it will evolve beyond being just a giant in memory chips, smartphones and display screens. Including the late Lee Kun-Hee’s 4.18% stake, the family combined holds a 5.79% of Samsung Electronics. But Samsung’s business likely would run smoothly even if Lee is imprisoned again, said Park Sangin, a professor at Seoul National University.

Lee died with his family members by his side, including his only son and Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the company said in a statement. Lee Kun-Hee was convicted in 2008 for illegal share dealings, tax evasion and bribery designed to pass his wealth and corporate control to his three children. Lee Kun-Hee was a stern, terse leader who focused on big-picture strategies, leaving details and daily management to executives. Lee Kun-Hee resigned as chairman of Samsung Electronics before the 2008 conviction. “As South Korea’s most successful entrepreneur, (Lee Kun-Hee) received a dazzling spotlight, but he had many vicissitudes full of grace and disgrace,” the ruling Democratic Party said in a statement.

The charges against Lee and the other Samsung officials include stock price manipulation, breach of trust, and auditing violations related to the 2015 merger between Samsung C&T Corp. and Cheil Industries, said Lee Bok-hyun, a senior official from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office. It went ahead despite opposition from some shareholders who said the deal unfairly benefited the Lee family. Lee was freed in February 2018 after the Seoul High Court reduced his term to 2 years and suspended his sentence, overturning key convictions. However, months later the Supreme Court sent the case back to the High Court, saying that the amount of bribes Lee was judged to have offered was undervalued. Some legal experts say Lee could be sentenced to another term in jail if convicted again.