Deals

Petrochemicals
LG Chem to sell $1.6 bn stake in LG Energy to foreign investors
South Korea’s leading chemicals company LG Chem Ltd. is slated to secure about 2 trillion won ($1.6 billion) by selling a minority stake in its battery affiliate LG Energy Solution Ltd. to ramp up capital expenditures for a new growth engine.
Jun 19, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
-
Bio & Pharma
Celltrion puts Takeda’s assets up for sale after 3 years
South Korea’s Celltrion Inc. has put its Japanese Takeda Pharmaceutical Co.'s primary care assets acquired in 2020 on sale as the biosimilar g...
Jun 18, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Entertainment
K-content makers to list on Nasdaq via $610 mn SPAC deal
Seven South Korean content makers are set to list on the Nasdaq through a $610 million merger deal with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC)...
Jun 16, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
4 Min read -
Corporate bonds
Hyundai Group chief calls on PE firm help to defend against Schindler
South Korea’s conglomerate Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun is seeking money from a local private equity firm to defend the management ...
Jun 14, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
SKC to sell unit to Glenwood PE at $390 mn for future biz
SKC Ltd., a South Korean chemical materials maker, is set to sell a subsidiary to Glenwood Private Equity in a deal estimated at 500 billion won ($3...
Jun 13, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
BlackRock buys $860 mn stake in S.Korean gas supplier
Global asset manager BlackRock has bought a 30% stake in South Korea’s industrial gas supplier AirFirst Co. for 1.11 trillion won ($860 millio...
Jun 09, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
K-pop
Fifty Fifty label seeks investment from Silicon Valley
The South Korean label behind K-pop rookie sensation Fifty Fifty is looking to Silicon Valley for investment as the four-girl band, already with a l...
Jun 02, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
2 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
Notice of share sales in PT Bayan Resources Tbk & Moolarben Joint Venture
Notice of Share Sales in PT Bayan Resources Tbk I. Overview of sale 1. Sellers: Korea Southern Power Co., Ltd.(“KOSPO”), Korea S...
May 31, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
6 Min read -
Bio & Pharma
Medtronic to buy S.Korean insulin patch maker for $738 mn
Medtronic Plc., a Dublin, Ireland-based medical device maker, is set to acquire EOFlow Co., a South Korean wearable insulin patch maker, for $738 mi...
May 26, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Batteries
SK On wins $909 mn from BlackRock, QIA, MBK consortium
SK On Co., the world’s fifth-largest battery maker, has confirmed it will receive a 1.2 trillion won ($908.7 million) investment for a minorit...
May 24, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
MBK Partners puts Korea’s largest golf course operator on market
North Asia-focused private equity firm MBK Partners has put Golfzon County Co., the biggest golf course operator in South Korea, on sale at an estim...
May 23, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Capital raising
CJ Bioscience conducts paid-in capital increase of $50 mn
South Korea's CJ Bioscience Inc., a pharmaceutical company specializing in intestinal microorganisms called microbiomes, will conduct a paid-in capi...
May 23, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
Korea's two ride hailing apps to merge in H1, become top operator
South Korea’s ride hailing apps TADA and i.M are set to complete their merger as early as the first half of this year, aiming to become the co...
May 22, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Airlines
US antitrust body blocks $1.4 bn Korean Air-Asiana deal
Korean Air Lines Co. ’s acquisition of smaller domestic rival Asiana Airlines Inc. is poised to collapse after the US antitrust agency raised ...
May 22, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
4 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
SKC to buy controlling stake in chip test maker ISC for about $300 mn
SKC Ltd., a South Korean chemical materials company, is slated to buy a controlling stake in semiconductor chip test maker ISC Co., in a deal estima...
May 19, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Airlines
Korean Air-Asiana merger hits roadblock in US, Europe
The proposed merger between South Korea’s two largest airlines hit a roadblock in the West as a media outlet reported that the US government i...
May 19, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Artificial intelligence
Korean institutions eye investment in OpenAI at $40 bn valuation
OpenAI, the world’s most well-known artificial intelligence lab, is tapping South Korean institutional investors for investment at an estimate...
May 17, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Pre-IPOs
Doosan begins pre-IPO funding round for US fuel cell unit HyAxiom
Doosan Corp., the holding company of South Korean plant-to-machinery conglomerate Doosan Group, is slated to attract $200 million for its hydrogen f...
May 12, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Cloud computing
Korean KT Cloud to raise $452 mn from IMM via rights offering
KT Cloud Corp., a subsidiary of South Korea’s telecom giant KT Corp., is set to raise 600 billion won ($452 million) from a unit of Seoul-base...
May 11, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
Celltrion drops bid to acquire Baxter’s biopharm unit
Celltrion Inc. announced on Tuesday it has decided not to pursue the acquisition of the biopharmaceutical unit of U.S. medical device maker Baxter I...
May 09, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Private debt
Korean app market One Store to raise $151 mn for Kiwoom's exit
One Store Co., a South Korean homegrown app store, is slated to attract more than 200 billion won ($151.3 million) as its 100 billion won loan, whic...
May 08, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
2 Min read -
ESG bonds
S.Korean green bonds draw strong demand amid ESG fever
South Korean green bonds eligible for government support enjoyed robust demand despite lower yields, as investors upgraded environmental, social, ...
May 08, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
LG Chem in talks with Glenwood to sell off diagnostics unit
LG Chem Ltd. is slated for exclusive talks with Seoul-based Glenwood Private Equity to sell off its in vitro diagnostics business, according to biop...
May 03, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Shareholder activism
Korean activist fund mired in controversy over SM stock deals
A South Korean private equity firm leading shareholder activism against SM Entertainment Co. is mired in controversy as it has surfaced that it sold...
May 02, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
4 Min read -
Private equity
KKR to buy Namsan Green Building in Seoul for $186.7 million
KKR & Co. Inc. has agreed to buy Namsan Green Building in a central office district in Seoul for an estimated 250 billion won ($186.7 million).T...
Apr 28, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Bio & Pharma
SK Bioscience to invest $1.8 billion, seeks M&As for inorganic growth
SK Bioscience Co., the drug-making unit of South Korea’s SK Group, plans to spend 2.4 trillion won ($1.8 billion) over the next five years and...
Apr 28, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
3 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
PwC’s S.Korean member to focus on SE Asia acquisition deals
Samil PricewaterhouseCoopers, the South Korean member firm of global accounting industry leader PwC, aims to focus on overseas acquisition deals of ...
Apr 28, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
2 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
Korea's Kakao Pay to buy 51% of US financial firm Siebert
Kakao Pay Corp., the mobile payment and digital wallet service unit of South Korean tech giant Kakao Corp., announced on Thursday it has signed an a...
Apr 27, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
Korea clears way for Hanwha's $1.45 bn takeover of DSME
South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC) on Thursday gave its nod for Hanwha Group’s 2-trillion-won ($1.45 billion) takeover of Daewoo ...
Apr 27, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read -
Mergers & Acquisitions
Glenwood files $40 mn arbitration claim against Baring PEA
Glenwood Private Equity has filed an arbitration claim of about 50 billion won ($40 million) against Baring Private Equity Asia (Baring PEA), after ...
Apr 21, 2023 (Gmt+09:00)
1 Min read
Latest News