The Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC), the country’s trade regulator, has reportedly asked the Samsung Group to alter its corporate structure. It has advised the company to cut complex circular cross-holdings that tie its multiple units together and reorganise itself under three main holding companies. The key stakeholder family’s share in the company has been increasingly diluted through investments and share transfers (Samsung is South Korea’s largest family-controlled conglomerate). Other major conglomerates too have been singled out by KFTC for their complex corporate structures. These include the SK Group, which operates SK Telecom, one of the largest Korean mobile telecom operators.
