Samsung heir raises his profile in and out of S. Korea

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong has moved to expand his profile since his promotion in December, in a clear sign that he is on track to lead Samsung Group, South Korea's largest family-owned conglomerate founded by his late grandfather decades ago.

Lee left for Japan on Thursday for talks with Japanese business partners via Samsung private jet, not the commercial flights he used during his previous overseas trips.

The rare development suggested that his stature and role inside Samsung Group has been enhanced.

He has also recently met high-profile former and current foreign officials, apparently on behalf of his aging father Lee Kun-hee, the chairman of Samsung Electronics, the world's biggest maker of smartphones, TVs and computer memory chips.

Last month, the junior Lee met with former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and France's first South Korean-born Cabinet minister Fleur Pellerin at Samsung Electronics headquarters in southern Seoul.

Lee also saw Powell out after their meeting, a rare move for the junior Lee, who previously favored not to disclose his meetings with high-profile officials.

Lee also met with Kenneth C. Frazier, chief executive officer of Merck & Co., the world's third-largest drugmaker, earlier this week, in the latest sign of Lee's enhanced position in Samsung Group.

In February, Samsung Bioepis, one of Samsung's healthcare affiliates, signed a deal with U.S. pharmaceuticals giant Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., to cooperate in the biosimilar sector.

Samsung Bioepis is a joint venture between Samsung Biologics and U.S.-based Biogen Idec. established in February 2012. Earlier this month, Lee met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Boao Forum in China as the Samsung heir was named as a new board member of the regional forum, dubbed Asia's "Davos Forum."

Lee's high-profile activities in recent months have fueled speculation whether they are linked to his eventual ascent to the top post of Samsung Group, which accounts for nearly one-fifth of the country's gross domestic product.

Lee's father, Lee Kun-hee, inherited the top post of Samsung from his father and founder Lee Byung-chull in 1987. Still, Lee Kun-hee waited nine years to gain full management control after becoming vice chairman, and has since made Samsung a household name in the United States and Europe as well as South Korea.

Samsung admitted that Lee Jae-yong has taken a broader role in managing Samsung Electronics' businesses, but it indicated that there will be no transfer of management control anytime soon.