Lee Jay-hyun

South Korean magnate Lee Jay-hyun, the prominent chairman of CJ Group and born in 1960, exemplifies a remarkable journey from his roots as the eldest grandson of Samsung's founder Lee Byung-chul, to a distinguished business leader. Despite being thrust into the limelight following a familial split within Samsung, Lee's education at Kyungbock High School and Korea University paved the way for his entry into Citibank in 1983, and subsequently into CheilJedang under his grandfather's guidance in 1985. His strategic vision propelled CJ Group to become the 13th-largest conglomerate in South Korea. Lee's career, however, faced a setback in 2014 with a four-year prison sentence for tax evasion and embezzlement, although he was pardoned in 2016 by President Park Geun-hye. As of 2021, his net worth stands at an impressive US$1.34 billion. Lee, who married Kim Heui-jae in 1984 and fathered two Columbia University graduates, has also contributed to academia through the Lee Family Scholarship at Columbia College.