By Jhoo Dong-chan
The two sons of Lotte Group founder Shin Kyuk-ho, who have been engaged in a fierce dispute over control of the group, have finally met face to face.
But they failed to resolve their prolonged sibling feud, according to Lotte officials, as Chairman Shin Dong-bin continues to tighten his grip on Korea’s fifth-largest conglomerate, with his elder brother Dong-joo seeking to take control away from his younger brother.
The two met at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul, Thursday, accepting their mother Shigemitsu Hatsuko’s recommendation for reconciliation.
Expecting no further feuds since Lotte Group founder and their father Shin Kyuk-ho officially retired as a director of the group's holding company last week, she suggested her two sons reconcile, according to industry observers.
Both sides accepted the recommendation and met each other, but reportedly failed to reach a reconciliation.
“It is now almost impossible for Dong-joo to take back the group’s control. I believe the meeting was to prevent their feud from becoming a long-term legal struggle,” an industry observer said.
A Lotte Group official said they do not know what the two talked about during the meeting.
“Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin and Lotte Holdings former Chairman Shin Dong-joo shared recognition for the necessity of reconciliation,” the official said.
“Nothing was decided to or agreed upon during the meeting, but the chairman still has the will to talk to his bother and will do his best to settle the feud.”
Last week, Lotte Group’s holding company decided to retire Lotte Group founder Shin Kyuk-ho as a director of the holding company during a regular shareholders' meeting at its headquarters in Tokyo. The decision officially ends Shin's practical involvement in the group's management as he left the boards of Lotte Confectionary and Hotel Lotte last year. He also stepped down from the Lotte Shopping board in March.
The decision is expected to enhance Dong-bin's management position within the group, whereas his rival Dong-joo's suggestion to appoint four directors and one auditor of his choice was rejected. The SDJ Corp. chairman's request that Dong-bin be removed as group chairman was also rejected.
The two-year rivalry for management control of Lotte Group started ahead of a shareholders' meeting of Lotte Holdings in 2015.
Dong-bin, Kyuk-ho's second eldest son, who appears to have consolidated control of the 90 trillion won business empire by fending off a recent coup attempt by his elder brother Shin Dong-joo, is said to be in a better position to win managerial control of the holding firm.
In the meantime, Dong-joo brandished a letter purportedly written by their father proclaiming Dong-joo as the rightful heir.
Dong-joo continuously requested that his brother be retired as the group’s chairman in previous shareholders’ meetings, which only ended in failure.