Cho Yang-rai to fight MBK Partners’ bid to acquire Hankook & Company

[Courtesy of Hankook & Company, MBK Partners]

Hankook & Company Co. Chairman Emeritus Cho Yang-rai will use all the resources available to him to fight off a tender offer from private equity firm MBK Partners Ltd. This move is also deemed as an effort to reinstate his past decision to hand over the company’s management to his second son.

Hankook & Company is the holding company of South Korea’s top tire maker Hankook Tire & Technology Co.

“I cannot just give away the company I spent my whole life building to a private equity firm,” Cho was quoted as saying in a recent message sent to some employees on Tuesday.

Cho’s statements strongly indicate that he will continue purchasing shares as a preferred shareholder even if MBK Partners increases its bidding price. He also emphasized that retail investors should not incur losses due to attempts to disturb the stock market.

With over 500 billion won ($379 million) in cash, Cho previously transferred all his stakes in Hankook & Company to his second son and current company chairman Cho Hyun-bum.

In response to MBK Partners’ stance that it will not raise the bidding price, Hankook & Company shares saw a 6.87 percent drop to 21,000 won per share.

The company’s stock price remains higher than the bidding price despite the significant drop, leading to speculation that MBK Partners could raise the bidding price for a higher offer. Some analysts suggested that the younger Cho’s parties are buying company shares to move the stock price.

But investment banking (IB) experts argued that MBK Partners is unlikely to raise the bidding price, as an increase could diminish returns and pose risks to additional fund raising.