Samsung Electronics has appointed Jay Y. Lee as the executive chairman to lead the world’s largest smartphone and memory chipmaker, two months after the heir received a presidential pardon that erased the 54-year-old’s criminal record.
Last year, Lee was paroled from prison after serving 18 months in jail for bribing former South Korean president Park Geun-hye. The parole prohibited Lee from employment for five years and limited overseas travel. In August, Lee received a special presidential pardon, which allowed Lee to officially participate in the management, restoring his right to work at Samsung and accelerating its decision-making on major strategies from chipmaking to investment plans.
Lee, who has been vice chairman of Samsung since 2012, had been expected to take over the tech giant after the death of his father Kun-hee Lee, the late Samsung Group chai …
