Hyundai’s Chung stock-rich heir

By Kang Seung-woo

Hyundai Motor Vice Chairman Chung Eui-sun has become the most stock-rich among heirs of Korea’s top 30 industrial conglomerates, a survey said Thursday.

According to Chaebul.com, an online portal that specializes in information concerning large businesses and family-owned conglomerates, the 40-year-old Chung’s stock assets were worth 2.26 trillion won ($1.98 billion) on the basis of Wednesday’s closing price at the Korea Exchange (KRX) to top the 59-member pecking order.

Chung is the only son of Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Mong-koo.

The site compared the market values of stock holdings owned by 59 children of the family-owned business groups.

At the start of this year, Chung junior had stock assets estimated at 1.47 trillion won, making him the third richest behind Lotte Group Vice Chairman Shin Dong-bin and Lotte Japan Vice President Shin Dong-joo, both of whom are the sons of Lotte Group founder Shin Kyuk-Ho.

Chung possesses a 31.88 percent stake in Glovis, the logistics subsidiary of the country’s top carmaker, and owns minor stakes in Hyundai Motor and its other car making unit Kia Motor.

Vehicle giant Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, which controls a batch of auto-centered subsidiaries, is the nation’s second-largest conglomerate after Samsung Group.

The two Shins rounded out the top three. Dong-bin, 55, came in second with his shares worth 2.23 trillion won, while Dong-joo, 56, placed third at 2.18 trillion won.

Chung Yong-jin, vice chairman of retail group Shinsegae Group and the only son of group Chairwoman Lee Myung-hee, was listed fourth at 927.2 billion won and Koo Kwang-mo, the son of LG Group Chairman Koo Bon-moo, ranked fifth at 674.5 billion won.

Lee Jae-yong, an executive vice president at Samsung Electronics and in the spotlight following his father Lee Kun-hee’s remarks on his only son’s promotion Wednesday, sat sixth with 668.1 billion won and Kim Nam-ho, the first son of Dongbu Group Chairman Kim Jun-ki, ranked seventh at 541.7 billion won.

Chung’s stock assets have posted the biggest increase this year among the scions of the local conglomerates’ heads.

His share value soared by 793.8 billion won, from the beginning of this year, followed by increases in value for Dong-joo (590.1 billion won), Dong-bin (589 billion won) and Chung Kyo-sun, Hyundai Home Shopping CEO, (182.9 billion won).

On the other hand, Shin Dong-won, vice chairman of Nongshim, a major foodmaker in Korea, suffered the sharpest drop of 20.9 billion won in stock assets, followed by Kim Dong-kwan, the eldest son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn (19.6 billion won) and Lee Jae-yong (11.8 billion won).

The website said that the overall stock assets of the 59 scions of the 30 conglomerates tallied 14.92 trillion won, up 31.5 percent from 11.35 trillion won at the beginning of 2010.