Rich Koreans Hand Kids Millions to Shield Against Estate Taxes

Some are barely old enough to walk and talk, much less understand the stock market. But thanks to South Korea’s tax laws, a growing number of children as young as 1 are sitting on shareholdings collectively worth millions of dollars.

These rich kids are increasingly appearing on stockholder registries as the aging tycoons who fueled Korea’s postwar industrialization shift their stakes to descendants to avoid inheritance taxes that can reach 50%, the second-highest rate among OECD countries. By gifting shares now instead of passing them on at death, wealthy Korean families can legally cut their tax bills.

While similar tax-minimization ...