Hyundai Mobis Annual General Meeting Quiet Amid COVID-19... Chung Eui-sun Reappointed as Inside Director (Comprehensive)

Hyundai Mobis Shareholders Meeting on the 18th... COVID-19 Precautions Including Body Temperature Checks and Masks
"Priority on Electronic Voting and Proxy Use" Results in Around 30 Actual Attendees
Five Proposals Including Reelection of Jeong Eui-seon as Inside Director Passed Without Incident

On the 18th, at the Hyundai Mobis shareholders' meeting held in the main auditorium of Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, employees are preparing to welcome shareholders while wearing masks. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] The atmosphere at the Hyundai Mobis shareholders' meeting changed drastically due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). At the shareholders' meeting held for about an hour, Chung Eui-sun, Executive Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, was reappointed as an inside director without any surprises, while the number of shareholders actually attending the meeting significantly decreased, creating a quiet scene.

On the morning of the 18th, at the 43rd regular shareholders' meeting of Hyundai Mobis held in the large auditorium of Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, only about 20 shareholders wearing masks were seated in the approximately 300-seat venue. This was a completely different atmosphere from last year's meeting, which attracted much attention due to the proxy battle with the US-based hedge fund Elliott Management. Prior to the meeting, Hyundai Mobis CEO Park Jung-guk sent a shareholder letter urging, "Please prioritize exercising voting rights through electronic voting or proxy forms rather than visiting the meeting venue," which seemed to have contributed to the reduced attendance.

Due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19, the entry procedures to the meeting venue became more stringent. Hyundai Mobis required all entrants to undergo temperature checks before confirming shareholder status. After the fever screening, the names, dates of birth, and temperatures of all entrants were meticulously recorded.

In front of the stairs leading to the basement level 1 where the meeting was held, a notice was posted stating, "To prevent COVID-19 infection, entry to the meeting hall is prohibited for those with a temperature of 37.5 degrees Celsius or higher or exhibiting symptoms. Shareholders confirmed to have symptoms are requested to exercise their voting rights using the proxy forms provided."

Hyundai Mobis also prepared spare masks in case shareholders visited the meeting without wearing masks. However, since most attendees wore masks, there were hardly any cases where spare masks had to be provided. Hand sanitizers for COVID-19 prevention were also placed throughout the meeting venue.

On the morning of the 18th, the 43rd Hyundai Mobis Annual General Meeting of Shareholders was held at the Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance Grand Auditorium in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. (Photo by Hyundai Mobis)

Nevertheless, the actual number of attendees at the shareholders' meeting was only around 30. Unlike last year, when shareholders had to line up an hour before the start time for verification, entry was possible quickly without waiting until just before the meeting began. Even 30 minutes before the meeting, about 20 shareholders and 5 staff members were seated inside the venue.

Meanwhile, the agenda item that attracted the most attention at the meeting was the reappointment of Chung Eui-sun, Executive Vice Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, as an inside director. Despite opposition from some overseas pension funds, the motion passed without any surprises. Having become the de facto leader of the group last year by holding the positions of CEO of Hyundai Motor and Hyundai Mobis, Executive Vice Chairman Chung is expected to continue dominating the boards of key affiliates and leading major decision-making.

In addition, Hyundai Mobis appointed Jang Young-woo, CEO of Young & Co., as the outside director responsible for shareholder rights protection for the first time this year, and reappointed Carl Thomas Neumann as an outside director. They will serve as members of the audit committee along with other outside directors. A proposal to pay dividends of 3,000 KRW per common share and 3,050 KRW per preferred share was also approved. The number of shares with voting rights at the meeting was counted at 93,437,159 shares, with 80,154,291 shares (85.8%) represented by attending shareholders.

Hyundai Mobis expressed its ambition to lead a major transformation in organizational structure and corporate culture this year to become a game changer in the future mobility sector. In his greeting, CEO Park said, "We will focus on nurturing talent in autonomous driving, connectivity, and electrification, and based on this, lead future new technologies and new businesses to simultaneously secure growth and profitability." He emphasized, "We will accelerate open innovation by expanding strategic alliances and cooperation with technology-leading companies and promising startups to proactively secure core technological capabilities."

He also conveyed that an emergency response system is currently in operation considering shareholders' concerns due to the recent spread of COVID-19. CEO Park stated, "Hyundai Mobis operates an emergency response TFT to minimize the safety risks to employees and company losses. In particular, we have implemented alternating day remote work to reduce the risk of in-house infection and arranged alternative workplaces for essential personnel to maintain business continuity even in emergencies." He added, "We are securing additional liquidity and managing domestic and international supply chains to prepare for any potential internal and external risks."

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