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| (From left) Kim Bong-jin’s Graceful Brothers Chairman’s wife Seol Bo-mi, Kim Bong-jin’s Graceful Brothers Chairman, Kim Bum-soo, Kakao Chairman © News 1 |
Following Chairman Kim Bum-soo and Kakao, Chairman Kim Bong-jin, Chairman of Graceful Brothers, promised to return half of his fortune to society.
The two men who were self-made from the’dirt spoon’ and are leading the IT industry today draw attention with a different move from the first-generation’chaebol’ chief who devoted all his power to handing over property to their children.
◇Kakao Kim Beom-soo followed by Bae-min Kim Bong-jin also declared’half the property donation’
Kim Bong-jin, chairman of the Elegant Brothers, announced on the 18th that he will donate half of his fortune with his wife, Seol Bo-mi, through The Giving Pledge. The Giving Pledge is a movement that promises to give back most of their wealth to society by wealthy people around the world.
If we put together the fact that the stocks received by Chairman Kim’s sale of the People of Delivery to Delivery Heroes (DH) in Germany and the conditions for joining the Giving Pledge are’assets of more than $1 billion (about 1,105.8 billion won)’, the size of Kim’s donation is It is estimated to be at least 550 billion won.
“I and my wife decided to give back more than half of their property to society until they died,” said Chairman Kim through the pledge of The Giving Pleas. “This donation declaration will be the best legacy than anything else given to our children. I am sure that it is.”
Earlier on the 8th, Chairman Kim Beom-soo, Kakao, also declared that he would donate half of his fortune to society. Chairman Kim, through the company’s Kakao Talk channel’Kakao Community Times’, said, “I made a pledge to donate more than half of my assets to solve social problems while living in the future.” I will find and apply for it.”
Chairman Kim’s property amounts to 10 trillion won in Kakao shares, which he held in his own name, and the’half of the property’ he expressed his intention to donate is estimated to be worth 5 trillion won.
In the’hometown of capitalism’ America, a large amount of’donation king’ appears boring, but the two’s declaration of donation of’half of property’ is an unprecedented decision in Korea.
◇”Wealth gained more than effort…must give back in some way”
Chairman Kim Bong-jin and Chairman Kim Bum-soo are self-made entrepreneurs from ‘Soil Spoon’. They had a common point of starting a business while living as an ordinary office worker. They have long carried out various donation activities with a firm philosophy of’return to society’.
The two have donated tens of billions of dollars of private assets for years to make the world a better place. Chairman Kim Bum-soo has donated 7.2 billion won in cash and 94,000 stocks (approximately 15.2 billion won) at the personal level over the past 10 years, and Chairman Kim Bong-jin donated a total of 1031 million won to NGOs and schools from 2018 to 2020. .
They judge that’individual wealth’ has exceeded the level that individuals can accumulate through effort, and as the next step, they are attracting attention as a unique philosophy that they will use a group of wealth in public work for solving’social problems’.
In an interview with a media outlet in 2017, Chairman Kim Bum-soo said, “Because I’ve gained much more wealth than my efforts, it seems like more than that is a bonus,” he said. “If I don’t give back to society in any way, it gets me upset. What I can naturally do, It seems to have led to the idea of solving social problems by finding things that Kakao can do well.”
Chairman Kim Bong-jin also said, “As John Rawls said, “I think that the value of sharing the wealth according to the principle of’minimum beneficiary priority consideration’ is even more brilliant.” “I think it is a public confession that it is due to social luck and the help of many people.”
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| Chairman Kim Bong-jin and wife Seol Bo-mi’s donation pledge (provided by elegant brothers) © News1 |
◇ Donation to the wealth inheritance was a chaebol company… The first generation of ventures is concerned about’returning wealth’
Their’Noblesse Oblige’ (a moral obligation corresponding to a high social status) contrasts with the conglomerates that have focused on’passion of wealth’ rather than’return to society’. According to a survey by the Peterson Institute for International Economics in the United States, 74.1% of domestic asset prices as of 2014 have inherited wealth.
The first generation of industrialization, so-called’chaebol’ in Korean society, focused on external growth under the banner of’economic revival’ and’economic independence’ in a situation where it was in ruins after the Korean War. At that time, first-generation entrepreneurs were forced to devote themselves to industrial development and succession structures under the leadership of the government.
Of course, many chaebol companies have donated to fulfill their social responsibilities. However, there were many cases of donating company assets rather than total personal assets, and even that was the meaning of’atonement’ after causing social controversy. This is the background of the public’s unfavorable view of the chaebol chief’s donation activities.
However, foreign asset prices were different. Unlike Korean chaebols who became world-renowned by inheritance, foreign wealthy people accumulated wealth as self-made people and gave it back to society.
Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, professed to donate 99% of his fortune, while Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who has been ranked second in the world’s richest ranking for many years, will donate 85%. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, also announced that he would give back all his fortunes to society before he died.
After the initial industrialization, the first generation of ventures that emerged from the IT boom were different. In the mid-1990s, when a venture was a wasteland, those who opened a new era based on their passion for’making a better world’ began to consider’returning wealth’ beyond’creating wealth’. It is in a similar context that the first-generation entrepreneurs who retired from the front line of management transform into investors and focus on nurturing juniors.
◇”Our country will also become a general practice of’Noblesse Oblige'”
In the industry, it is expected that the domestic donation culture will become more active as an active movement to return to society appears, centering on domestic 4050 entrepreneurs. It is an analysis that as domestic entrepreneurs’ practice of Noblesse oblige becomes more common, big decisions such as Kim Bong-jin and Kim Bum-soo will become common.
Chairman Kim Bong-jin expressed his view that this donation decision would be the beginning for a better solution to social issues, not just individual issues. Right after Kim announced the donation news through The Giving Pledge on the 18th, <뉴스1>“I will do my best to spread the donation culture in Korea in my own way,” he said.
An official from the domestic venture industry said, “The Swedish Valenberg family operates a group (Valenberry Group) that is influential enough to account for 30% of Sweden’s gross domestic product (GDP), and they return enormous taxes and profits to society while continuing their fifth generation succession. And is respected by the Swedish people.”
He said, “Like the Valenberry Group,’Noblesse Oblige’, which was only seen in books in Korea, is being formed around the venture industry, and junior founders who inherited the spirit of seniority are expected to continue this move.”