Jeffrey Koo Sr.

Jeffrey Koo Sr.

Jeffrey Koo, Sr. (Chinese: 辜濂松; pinyin: Gū Líansōng; September 8, 1933 - December 6, 2012) was a Taiwanese banker and the chairman of Chinatrust, a financial holding company.

Early Years

Koo was born in 1933 in Taichū Prefecture during Japanese rule in Taiwan. He graduated from Soochow University in Taipei in 1957 with a BA in accounting, moved to New York (lived in Brooklyn Heights) and graduated from New York University in 1962 with a MBA.[1]

Family Connections

Koo is a nephew of Koo Chen-fu (founder of Koos Group) and Koo Kwang-ming.

Koo has a daughter and three sons, the eldest being Jeffrey Koo Jr.. All his children have connections to Chinatrust.[2]

Business Empire and Fortune

After working in the United States Koo return to Taiwan,[3] Koo founded what is now Chinatrust Commercial Bank with Koo Chen-fu in 1966.[4]

In June 2008, Forbes ranked him as the sixth richest individual in Taiwan, with a net worth of US$ 2.8 billion.[5] He is also an alumnus of Eisenhower Fellowships and a member of the Board of Trustees.[6]

Awards and Honorary Degrees

Death

Koo went to New York for treatment for Parkinson's and died on December 6, 2012. Koo is survived by his wife, three sons and a daughter.

References