Lotte head Shin Dong-bin to lead Japanese holding firm

Lotte Group announced Wednesday that Chairman Shin Dong-bin will head the holding firm in Japan, securing leadership of operations in South Korea and Japan, ending a six-year dispute with his elder brother Shin Dong-joo,.

The Lotte Holdings board of directors in Japan decided to appoint him as chairman effective April 1.

Lotte Holdings had operated under the leaderships of Lotte’s late founder Shin Kyuk-ho and Vice Chairman Dong-bin. The post was vacant since the founder was named honorary chairman in 2017. Dong-bin returned as CEO of Lotte Holdings in February last year.

His new position is expected to give a boost to the listing of Hotel Lotte.

The biggest challenge facing him has been the listing of Hotel Lotte and putting a holding system in place to form a single governance structure. He is the largest shareholder of Lotte Corp., with an 11.7 percent stake, but Hotel Lotte is 99 percent owned by Japan’s Lotte Holdings and its affiliates. The hotel also owns 11.1 percent of Lotte Corp.

“It is also expected that the operations in the two countries will actively seek ways to enhance synergies by strengthening cooperation and jointly pursuing global strategies. We will strive to enhance transparency in management and enhance corporate value.” Lotte Corp. said.

With the appointment, Dong-bin is also expected to become the owner of Chiba Lotte Marines, a professional baseball team in Japan, Lotte said.

He has been in a management dispute with his elder brother Dong-joo, former vice chairman of Lotte Holdings in Japan, since 2014. However, the six-year dispute will come to an end soon.

Lotte Corp. has to approve his reappointment as an in-house director at a shareholders meeting on April 27. He currently serves as an in-house board member of Lotte Corp., Lotte Confectionery, Lotte Chemical, Lotte Chilsung, Canon Korea and FRL Korea. 

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)