Lee Boo-jin
Born (1970-10-06) October 6, 1970 (age 53)[1][2] [3]
Seoul, South Korea[1]
EducationYonsei University
OccupationBusinesswoman
TitleCEO of Hotel Shilla
Spouse
Im Woo-jae
​
​
(m. 1999; div. 2020)​
[4]
Children1
Parent(s)Lee Kun-hee
Hong Ra-hee
RelativesLee Jae-yong (brother)
Lee Jay-hyun (cousin)
Korean name
Hangul
이부진
Hanja
Revised RomanizationLee Bujin
McCune–ReischauerI Puchin

Lee Boo-jin (born 1970) is a South Korean billionaire businesswoman who is the president and chief executive of Hotel Shilla, one of Seoul's leading hotels and conference centers. Lee has been dubbed by the media as "Little Lee Kun-hee" and is regarded as a successful businesswoman for her work in Hotel Shilla.[5] She is the younger sister of Samsung Electronics executive chairman Lee Jae-yong,[6] and the older sister of Lee Seo-hyun, chairman of Samsung Welfare Foundation.[7]

Early life

A native of Seoul, South Korea,[1] she is the daughter of Lee Kun-hee, the late billionaire chairman of Samsung.[3] She graduated from Daewon Foreign Language High School in Korea.[6] She earned a bachelor's degree from Yonsei University, majoring in children's studies.[3]

Career

Lee began her career at Samsung Welfare Foundation in 1995.[8]

In 2001, she joined Hotel Shilla, a member company of the Samsung Group, specializing in travel retail and the hospitality business. She has been the president and CEO of Hotel Shilla since December 2010.[8]

Lee was formerly president of corporate strategy for Samsung Everland and an advisor for the trading department of Samsung C&T from December 2010 to December 2015, with the two companies merging to become Samsung C&T Corporation in September 2015.[8]

She was an independent non-executive director of CITIC Limited from 2014 to 2019.[9]

As of February 2023, her net worth was estimated at US$3.3 billion.[10]

Since 2015, she has been ranked on Forbes' lists of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women.[11]

Personal life

She lives in Seoul, South Korea.[3]

In 1999, she married Im Woo-jae, known in the South Korean press as "Mr. Cinderella" because of his humble background, as an "employee of a security service affiliate of Samsung Group".[12] They separated in 2012, and have one son together.[3]

In a court ruling in July 2017, Lee was ordered to pay her ex-husband Im Woo-jae $7.6 million, as part of their divorce settlement, with Lee receiving sole custody of their son.[12] Im allegedly counter-sued and sought $1.1 billion as a division of assets, one of the largest amounts ever requested in an asset split trial in South Korea. Their divorce was settled in January 2020 with Lee ordered to pay Im $12.1 million in an asset split.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c "[Who Is ?] 이부진 호텔신라 대표이사 사장". Business Post (in Korean). 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
  2. ^ The Investor<<[1]>>
  3. ^ a b c d e "Forbes profile: Lee Boo-Jin". forbes.com. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  4. ^ a b Lee, Min-ji (January 27, 2020). "Top court upholds divorce of Samsung chairman's eldest daughter". Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2020 – via Yonhap News Agency.
  5. ^ Baek, Byung-yuel (October 27, 2020). "Will heiresses separate from Samsung empire?". The Korea Times. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  6. ^ a b 기자, 강민경 (2017-09-29). "호감가는 여성 CEO 1위 이부진 호텔신라 사장" [Hotel Shilla CEO Lee Boo-jin tops the list of likable female CEOs]. 인사이트코리아 (in Korean). Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  7. ^ 윤진우. "삼성복지재단, 이서현 신임 이사장 선임". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2023-05-19.
  8. ^ a b c "[Who Is ?] 이부진 호텔신라 대표이사 사장". 비즈니스포스트. 2022-05-10. Retrieved 2023-05-19.
  9. ^ 남윤선. "이부진, 中 국영기업 사외이사 됐다". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2023-05-19.
  10. ^ "Lee Boo-jin". Forbes. Retrieved 2023-05-19.
  11. ^ Valet, Vicky (May 26, 2015). "The World's Most Powerful Women: 19 Newcomers To The 2015 List". Forbes. Archived from the original on February 14, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  12. ^ a b "Samsung heiress ordered to pay $7.6 mln in divorce ruling". 20 July 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2017 – via Reuters.


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