"What's the Use of Money" Chairman Lee Kun-hee's 'Fake Letter' Spreads

Chairman Lee Kun-hee of Samsung. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Yeon-ju] Amid the circulation of an anonymous letter online, purportedly written by late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee during his lifetime, Samsung has stated that "the deceased did not write this letter."

On the 26th, posts titled "The Last Letter Left by Chairman Lee Kun-hee" have been spreading on social networking services (SNS) and KakaoTalk.

The letter contains advice such as, "Even if you have money and power, do not be arrogant; even if you are not wealthy, be content with small things; know how to rest even if you are not tired; no matter how busy you are, keep moving and exercising."

It also includes content like, "There will never be anyone to suffer pain on your behalf. If you lose an item, you can find or buy it again, but there is only one life that can never be recovered. Having come this far, what use is money? The endless pursuit of wealth has only made me a greedy old man."

Photo by Instagram post capture.

Furthermore, it states, "Many things I once took for granted and enjoyed... money, power, position are now nothing but trash," and "To those living the first half of life, do not live too hastily, and to those living the second half, the game is not over yet, so love yourself from now on for a happy old age."

However, this letter has been confirmed to be fake. Regarding the letter, Samsung stated, "This letter was circulating online even while the chairman was ill," and "the deceased did not write this letter."

Meanwhile, Lee Kun-hee, who represented the Korean business world as Samsung's chairman, passed away on the 25th at Samsung Medical Center in Irwon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. He was 78 years old. This was six years after he collapsed at his home in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, in May 2014 due to acute myocardial infarction.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.