Deals
Mergers & Acquisitions
Barbarians at the gate: fraud-hit Osstem wooed by bankers
South Korea's Osstem Implant Co., battered by the country's largest-ever embezzlement scandal for a listed company, is now being courted by investment banks and private equity firms, who believe there is much room for improvement in its corporate v
Jan 26, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Fraud scandals
Lazard seeks to sell off fraud-hit Osstem Implant
Lazard Asset Management has tapped multiple professional investors in South Korea to sell off its shares in Osstem Implant Co, worth $165 million, t...
Jan 25, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Korea’s biotech startup Voronoi to go public in March
South Korea’s biotechnology startup Voronoi Inc. plans an initial public offering in March to raise up to 130 billion won ($108.4 million).Vor...
Jan 25, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean chipmakers
SK Hynix to invest more in US chip design startup SiFive
SK Hynix Inc., South Korea’s major chipmaker, decided to make an additional investment in a US chip design startup SiFive in order to secure s...
Jan 24, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Lotte acquires Ministop Korea for $260 mn from Aeon
South Korea's Lotte Group has agreed to acquire a 100% stake in Ministop Korea for 313.4 billion won ($263 million), the country's fifth-largest con...
Jan 23, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Corporate bonds
S.Korea's Jan. bond issues on track for record $6 bn
South Korean companies are ramping up their local bond issuances to finance expansion into low-carbon and contactless platform businesses, with stro...
Jan 23, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
Zuckerberg-backed family office bets on Korean golf platform
ICONIQ Capital, a US family office backed by Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, has invested 50 billion won ($42 million) in Smartscore, a South ...
Jan 21, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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The Deep Dive
Behind the eye-popping numbers of LG Energy's IPO
The initial public offering of South Korea's LG Energy Solution Ltd. drew a record 11,500 trillion won ($9.65 trillion) in bids from institutional i...
Jan 21, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
Hyundai Samho Heavy says no delay to 2022 IPO
South Korea's Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co. this week reaffirmed its plan to go public by the end of this year, as agreed with its pre-IPO inve...
Jan 20, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean games
Microsoft $69 bn bet spurs Korea game makers' search for metaverse deals
South Korea’s game developers are expected to seek more acquisitions of the metaverse and non-fungible token (NFT) companies for new profit so...
Jan 20, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean food
Vegan foodmaker Organica attracts funding from China's CITIC
Plant-based food company Organica Corp. has attracted investment from China’s alternative investment firm CITIC Capital Holdings Ltd. This mar...
Jan 20, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
One in 10 Koreans rushes for LG Energy shares ahead of $8.6 billion IPO
The world’s second-largest electric vehicle battery maker LG Energy Solution Ltd. has set a new record for initial public offering demand, wit...
Jan 19, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Venture capital
Stonebridge Ventures to set up $168 mn new fund in H1
Stonebridge Ventures Inc., South Korea’s most profitable venture capital firm, plans to establish a fresh fund of $168 million, the largest in...
Jan 19, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Banking & Finance
Vietnam gives traction to Korean banks' global push
South Korea's leading banks began to reap the rewards of their efforts to become regional players in Asia, with their aggressive investments in Viet...
Jan 19, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Materials, parts makers drive Korea's 2021 M&A boom
Materials, components and equipment makers drove South Korea's mergers and acquisitions market to a record high last year, with smaller deals involv...
Jan 18, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Affinity to send teaser for Burger King Korea, Japan sale
Affinity Equity Partners is set to send an investment teaser this week for the planned sale of Burger King’s operations in South Korea and Jap...
Jan 18, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Corporate strategy
NTT DoCoMo sells $370 mn KT shares to Shinhan Bank
Japan's mobile phone operator NTT DoCoMo has sold all its shares in KT Corp., worth 437.5 billion won ($370 million), to Shinhan Bank which formed a...
Jan 18, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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M&As
Lotte Group beats Shinsegae to acquire Ministop Korea
Lotte Group beat its retail rival Shinsegae Group in a competition to buy South Korea’s fifth-largest convenience store chain Ministop Korea. ...
Jan 17, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Private equity
KTB PE earns 100% return from US brand sold to P&G
South Korea-based KTB Private Equity has earned a 100% return from Farmacy Beauty, just a year after its investment, following Procter & Gamble'...
Jan 17, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Collapsed merger’s silver lining: More cash for Hyundai Heavy
The European Commission’s rejection of Hyundai Heavy Industries Co.'s proposed merger with crosstown rival Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine En...
Jan 14, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Korean Air wary of Asiana deal after EU blocks HHI-DSME merger
Korean Air Lines Co. and Asiana Airlines Inc. are wary of the fate of their proposed merger after the European Union blocked the combination of Sout...
Jan 14, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Shipping & Shipbuilding
Creditors to unveil new plans next week to sell DSME
Creditor banks of South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. (DSME) are mulling new ways to find a new owner of the debt-ridden ...
Jan 14, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Mergers & Acquisitions
Hyundai Heavy, DSME merger falls through on EU veto
The European Commission on Thursday vetoed the combination of the world’s two largest shipbuilders Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and Daewoo Shi...
Jan 14, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Private equity
MBK sells 10% stake to Dyal Capital for around $1 bn
North Asia-focused MBK Partners has agreed to sell a roughly 13% stake to Dyal Capital Partners for about $1 billion, according to a Bloomberg repor...
Jan 13, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Private equity
Baillie Gifford, Allianz increase holdings in 3D tech firm Koh Young
Global asset managers are increasing shareholdings in Koh Young Technology Inc., Korea’s leading 3D image measurement tech firm listed ...
Jan 13, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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IPOs
LG Energy sets new IPO record with $9.65 trillion investor demand
LG Energy Solution Ltd., the world’s second-largest battery maker, has set a new record for an initial public offering with demand for its sha...
Jan 12, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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M&As
The Princeton Review up for sale by Korean edutech firm
South Korea's leading edutech service firm has put The Princeton Review up for sale, five years after it acquired the US college test preparation se...
Jan 11, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Korean startups
SK Networks invests in AI-based US healthcare startup LVIS
South Korea’s SK Networks Co. said on Tuesday it joined a $15 million in Series B-2 funding for US healthcare startup LVIS Corp.LVIS, headquar...
Jan 11, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Alternative investments
Hyundai E&C to inject $343 mn in Hilton Seoul redevelopment
Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. (Hyundai E&C), a construction giant under Hyundai Motor Company, will invest 409.9 billion wo...
Jan 11, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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Shipping & Shipbuilding
Hyundai Heavy uneasy ahead of EU decision despite $2.5 bn orders
South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Group grew more concerned ahead of the European Union’s decision on the combination of the world&...
Jan 11, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
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