Gu Chang-geun, CEO: "CJ Olive Young to Pursue IPO in 2022"… Denies Sale Rumors

Pre-IPO 추진... 미래 성장 기반 마련
"대주주 CJ 지분 55.01% 변화 없어"
개인 주주 지분 매각 전망

Koo Chang-geun, CEO of CJ Olive Young

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] CJ Olive Young, a core affiliate of CJ Group, is pushing for a stock market listing targeting the year 2022. This move directly denies circulating rumors about the sale of CJ Group companies and officially announces plans for external capital raising.

On the 2nd, Koo Chang-geun, CEO of CJ Olive Young (photo), stated on the in-house communication application 'Olive Lounge', "Olive Young is planning a pre-IPO (investment attraction based on going public) to take a step forward," adding, "With the funds raised through this, we aim to actively respond to domestic and international investment opportunities such as mergers and acquisitions (M&A) to strengthen the foundation for future growth."

He also drew a clear line regarding the rumors of CJ Group selling CJ Olive Young. He explained, "There will be no changes in the management shares of the major shareholder, CJ Corporation, so I hope there will be no unnecessary misunderstandings," and "We plan to start preparations related to the listing from next year, targeting 2022, and such changes are a natural process that must be undergone for Olive Young's long-term evolution."

Furthermore, CEO Koo added, "As the CEO, I will continue to communicate transparently with everyone," and promised, "I also commit to sharing the progress of investment attraction with you at an appropriate time."

The shares to be sold during the pre-IPO stage are expected to be those held by individual shareholders, but specific details are undecided. As of the end of 2019, the largest shareholder of CJ Olive Young is CJ Corporation, holding 55.01% of shares, while individual shareholders and related parties from the group owners, including Lee Sun-ho (17.97%), Lee Jae-hwan (10.03%), Lee Kyung-hoo (6.91%), Lee So-hye (4.58%), and Lee Ho-jun (4.58%), hold 44.07%. CJ Olive Networks holds 0.23%, and others account for 0.69%.

CJ Olive Young, spun off from CJ Olive Networks last year, is one of the group's major subsidiaries. It holds the overwhelming number one market share brand in the Health & Beauty (H&B) industry and has excellent cash-generating capabilities. In particular, Lee Sun-ho, the eldest son of CJ Chairman Lee Jae-hyun and Executive Vice President of CJ CheilJedang, holds 17.97% of the company's shares, leading to speculation that he will play a key role in the future succession process.

A CJ Olive Young official emphasized, "The scale and counterparties of the shares to be sold have not been decided, and we are currently in the investor tapping (demand survey) stage, planning to proceed flexibly depending on market conditions," adding, "The shares of the largest shareholder, CJ Corporation, are not at all subject to sale."

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