Samsung Chairman Lee Jae-yong to Buy 1.94 Trillion Won Stake From His Mother Hong Ra-hee
Key Takeaways
- •Lee Jae-yong is scheduled to purchase 7,188,793 Samsung Electronics common shares from his mother, Hong Ra-hee, on Oct. 12 in an off-market transaction valued at approximately 1.937 trillion won.
- •The planned price of 269,500 won per share references the company's Sept. 8 closing price, and both the disclosed price and volume could change under applicable regulations.
- •Once the transfer is completed, Lee's holdings will grow from 97,551,953 to 104,740,746 shares, raising his stake in Samsung Electronics from 1.47 percent to 1.58 percent.
- •Because the shares are moving within the founding family rather than being sold into the market, the aggregate holdings of the largest shareholder and related parties will effectively stay the same.
- •Hong's prior disposals, including an April block sale of 15 million shares worth about 3.08 trillion won, have been tied by market observers to the family's roughly 12 trillion won inheritance-tax bill, which carries a top rate of 50 percent.
Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong plans to acquire 7.19 million shares in the chipmaker from his mother, Hong Ra-hee, in an off-market transaction valued at 1.94 trillion won ($1.45 billion), a move that will lift his direct stake in the company.
According to a regulatory filing by Samsung Electronics on Wednesday, Lee is scheduled to purchase 7,188,793 common shares from Hong, the widow of the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee and honorary director of the Leeum Museum of Art, on Oct. 12. The planned price is 269,500 won per share, based on the company's Sept. 8 closing price, bringing the total transaction value to approximately 1.937 trillion won. Both the disclosed price and volume remain subject to change under applicable regulations, and because the reference price is pegged to a past close, the final terms could differ from where the stock trades on the transfer date.
Once completed, Lee's holdings in Samsung Electronics will increase from 97,551,953 shares to 104,740,746 shares. Measured against the company's total outstanding common and preferred shares, his stake will rise from 1.47 percent to 1.58 percent.
Because the shares are being transferred within Samsung's controlling family rather than sold as a new block into the market, the broader holdings of the company's largest shareholder and related parties will effectively remain unchanged. No specific reason for the transaction was disclosed. Intra-family, off-market transfers of this kind are closely watched because they reshuffle ownership within the founding family without adding new supply to the market.
Market observers have linked Hong's ongoing share sales to financing associated with the roughly 12 trillion won inheritance-tax bill imposed on the family following the 2020 death of late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee. South Korea's inheritance tax carries a top rate of 50 percent, among the highest in the world. The family completed its five-year installment payments earlier this year.
In April, Hong sold 15 million Samsung Electronics shares in a block deal worth about 3.08 trillion won. That earlier disposal followed a trust agreement that explicitly cited tax payments and loan repayment as its purpose. It has not been confirmed whether proceeds from the latest transaction will be used to repay related borrowings. With the Oct. 12 settlement ahead, attention will turn to whether the disclosed terms hold and how the proceeds are ultimately used.
