Hyundai
was a multinational chaebol headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It was
founded by Chung Ju-yung in 1947 as a construction firm and Chung was
directly in control of the company until his death in 2001.
Hyundai underwent a major restructuring and break-up following the 1997 East Asian financial crisis and Chung's death, and the rump Hyundai Group's
business was reduced to container shipping services, the manufacturing
of elevators and tourism. Today most companies bearing the name Hyundai
are not legally connected to Hyundai Group, including Hyundai Motor Group, Hyundai Department Store Group, Hyundai Heavy Industries Group and Hyundai Development Company. However most of the former subsidiaries of the Hyundai chaebol
continue to be run by relatives of Chung. If these companies are
considered as forming a broad family business, then it remains the
single largest company in South Korea, with enormous economic and
political power in the country.
