Samsung’s businesses reach deep into many parts of South Korean people’s lives, from the cradle to the grave.
Its businesses reach deep into many parts of people’s lives, from the cradle to the grave.
South Koreans can be born in a Samsung-owned medical center, grow up learning to read and write with the help of Samsung tablets and go on to attend the Samsung-affiliated Sungkyunkwan University.
It doesn’t end there. They may then live in a Samsung-built apartment complex, fitted out with the company’s appliances and electronics. South Koreans can even end up at a Samsung funeral parlor when they die.
Related: Samsung heir arrested in corruption scandal
Samsung is one of South Korea’s chaebols — large, family-controlled conglomerates that have dominated the country’s economy for decades. However, the powerful corporations’ close ties to the South Korean political elite are now facing unprecedented scrutiny.
Samsung’s de facto chief, Lee Jae-yong, was arrested Friday over allegations of bribery and other charges. Lee and Samsung deny the accusations, which have thrust the company into the heart of a massive political scandal that has rocked the South Korean establishment.
