Exclusive
Lotte Foundation Chair Shin Young-ja purchases land in Pyeongchang owned by her children for 900 million won

[비즈한국] It has been confirmed that Shin Young-ja, chair of the Lotte Foundation, purchased approximately 1,400 pyeong of land in Pyeongchang-gun registered under her children's names for 900 million won. The transaction includes plots classified as "jeon" (farmland). The Lotte Foundation stated, "Chair Shin Young-ja purchased the land because she needed it for agricultural purposes."

Lotte Foundation Chair Shin Young-ja, her daughter Lotte New York Palace Executive Director Jang Seon-yoon, and her son Jang Jae-young purchased land in the Yongsan-ri area of Daegwallyeong-myeon, Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon-do, between 2005 and 2006. At the time, there was controversy over speculation as business and entertainment figures bought large tracts of land in Pyeongchang, the host city of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. In 2012, Lotte Group stated, "The Pyeongchang land was purchased in 2005 and 2006 for the purpose of building residences for rural life and hobby groups."

The total area of land purchased by Chair Shin Young-ja’s family at that time was 11,050㎡. Among these, one plot (1,500㎡, 453 pyeong) purchased by Executive Director Jang Seon-yoon was classified as "jeon," making it farmland under the Farmland Act. However, because Director Jang did not engage in farming, she received a "disposal order" from Pyeongchang-gun in 2012 for violating the Farmland Act (Related article: [Exclusive] Lotte Hotel Executive Director Jang Seon-yoon leaves land neglected after planting saplings on Pyeongchang farmland to avoid disposal obligation).

According to BizHankook's investigation, on April 3, Chair Shin Young-ja purchased four plots of land in Pyeongchang-gun owned by her daughter, Executive Director Jang Seon-yoon, and son, Jang Jae-young, for 975,343,000 won. The total area is 4,802㎡, or 1,452 pyeong. The total official assessed land value for 2025 is 470,406,900 won, meaning the transaction price is more than double the official value. With this, Chair Shin Young-ja has become the sole owner of 10,000㎡ of land in the Yongsan-ri area of Daegwallyeong-myeon, Pyeongchang-gun.

The land Chair Shin purchased from Executive Director Jang Seon-yoon includes plots that previously received disposal orders for violating the Farmland Act. The farmland, which had been left neglected with pine trees planted on it, has now been prepared as a field. A local resident said, "Originally, pine trees were planted, but after the land was sold this spring, I heard a local resident leased it. Recently, they cut down all the pine trees and turned it into a field to plant crops."

Under the Farmland Act, farmland cannot be purchased unless it is used directly for agricultural management. At the time of purchase, the buyer must submit an agricultural management plan and undergo review by the local government, such as obtaining a Certificate of Qualification for Farmland Acquisition. Regulations on leasing farmland are also strict. Farmland cannot be leased unless it is due to situations such as injury, imprisonment, overseas travel for more than three months, pregnancy, or illness.

In response, the Lotte Foundation stated, "We purchased it because there was a necessary agricultural-related use, but as reasons for commissioned management under Article 9 of the Farmland Act have occurred, it is currently being managed under commission. Everything was handled legally through legal counsel."

BizHankook requested information disclosure from Pyeongchang-gun to verify the circumstances surrounding the acquisition of this farmland, but Pyeongchang-gun refused, citing that the information subject did not consent to the provision of the information.