Semiconlight Announces Development of COVID-19 Sterilizing Mask, 920,000 Shares Sold on Announcement Day

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] Semiconductor LED manufacturer Semiconlight's stock price continues to plunge following its announcement to develop a ultraviolet (UV) mask using its own technology.

According to the financial investment industry on the 21st, Semiconlight announced around 9 a.m. on the 18th that it had signed an agreement with a UV mask patent holder to develop a mask utilizing its UVC-LED technology. Under the agreement, Semiconlight explained that it secured the rights to develop UVC sterilization masks and the distribution rights for the Asian region.

The patent involves a mask with UVC-LED chips inserted into side ventilation holes to sterilize incoming air. Semiconlight promoted that its UVC-LED was verified to have 99% sterilization effectiveness by a renowned American research institute.

However, the company did not disclose who the patent holder is or what specific patent was filed. A Semiconlight official stated, "The company to which the patent holder belongs is separate and the holder preferred not to be disclosed," adding, "The patent details were also kept confidential to prevent revealing the holder's identity."

On the day this information was released, Semiconlight's stock price initially rose 2.5% from the previous day to 3,490 KRW. However, it suddenly turned bearish and dropped as much as 22.76% around 2 p.m. Since then, Semiconlight's stock price has continued to fall, closing down 19.12% the following day.

The decline in stock price was driven by sell-offs from other corporations. On the 18th, other corporations sold 931,074 shares. On the 19th and 20th, 398,054 shares and 722,109 shares were sold respectively, totaling 2,051,237 shares.

This means that about 11.51% of Semiconlight's total shares were released into the market within three days. During the same period, individual investors net purchased 2,044,155 shares.

The market estimates that the large volume of shares sold likely included recently converted stocks. On the 17th of last month, Semiconlight's third convertible bonds (CB) worth 2.9 billion KRW were converted into shares. The issued shares amounted to 1,068,139, with a conversion price of 2,715 KRW.

There are still 6 billion KRW worth of outstanding CBs remaining. If all are converted, 2,209,944 new shares will be issued. This corresponds to 12.40% of Semiconlight's total shares. Semiconlight's largest shareholder, Fusion, currently holds a 9.27% stake.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.