Samsung announced on March 25 that Han Jong-hee, the company's co-CEO, had died of cardiac arrest at the age of 63.
A Samsung spokesperson said that Jong-hee died while being treated at a hospital in South Korea. The spokesperson added that a successor had not yet been decided.
Meanwhile, Chosun Biz reported that Jong-hee suffered cardiac arrest after attending his daughter's wedding on March 22 and was rushed to Seoul Samsung Hospital but did not survive. He was scheduled to speak at a company event on March 26.
Han Jong-hee's funeral will be held on March 27.
Mr. Jong-hee joined Samsung in 1988 and is credited with leading the company to global leadership in the TV industry. He was appointed Vice Chairman and CEO of Samsung Electronics in 2022. He is also a member of the company's board of directors, in charge of the mobile and consumer electronics divisions. Samsung also has another CEO, Mr. Jun Young-hyun, who oversees the semiconductor business.
According to Reuters, the incident occurred in the context of Samsung's mobile division facing increasingly fierce competition from rivals, especially Apple and Chinese brands. In other consumer electronics such as TVs, refrigerators, washing machines, etc., the Korean company is also struggling to maintain its position.
Previously, Mr. Jong-hee held a number of meetings to discuss the current situation of Samsung. Most recently, on March 19, at a meeting with shareholders in Suwon, he frankly pointed out that the company's technological competitiveness had weakened in recent years, and pledged to "pursue meaningful achievements" to recover this year, including a strategy on mergers and acquisitions.