[News Inside Companies] SK Shieldus Invests 2 Trillion Won, What Kind of Company is Wallenbergi?

Marcus Wallenberg, Chairman of SEB.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] EQT Partners, a private equity firm affiliated with Sweden's largest conglomerate, the Wallenberg Group, is reportedly investing around 2 trillion KRW in the domestic security company SK Shielders, drawing attention.

The Wallenberg Group is a historic Swedish family that Samsung once regarded as a 'role model.' Through various investment entities, they have invested in major companies such as the comprehensive home appliance company Electrolux, telecommunications equipment manufacturer Ericsson, defense contractor Saab, and AstraZeneca, which developed a COVID-19 vaccine.

World's Largest Private Equity Firm EQT Partners Joins Hands with SK Shielders

According to industry sources on the 2nd, EQT Partners is negotiating to acquire a 36.87% stake held by the Macquarie Infrastructure Asset Management (Macquarie PE) consortium, the second-largest shareholder of SK Shielders. SK Shielders' corporate value is estimated to be around 4 to 5 trillion KRW. The value of the Macquarie PE consortium's stake is approximately between 1.4 trillion KRW and 1.9 trillion KRW. Currently, SK Square, the largest shareholder of SK Shielders, holds 63.13% of the shares, and depending on the outcome of this negotiation, EQT Partners may become the largest shareholder.

As of 2022, EQT Partners is the world's largest private equity firm with total assets under management (AUM) of 90 billion euros (approximately 126 trillion KRW). It was established in 1994 by Investor AB, the investment holding company within the Wallenberg Group. It has invested in various Western industries including the US IT company Xylem Group, Swiss consumer goods giant Nestl?, and Spanish real estate information company Idealista.

Recently, EQT Partners has expanded its focus to Asia, actively considering investments in companies with growth potential. Around October last year, it also considered participating in SK Shielders' pre-IPO equity investment but the plan fell through. Earlier, SK Shielders had planned to go public in the first half of this year but withdrew the IPO in May due to adverse conditions such as the global financial market downturn. EQT Partners is reportedly expecting synergies with global security companies through the acquisition of SK Shielders.

Sweden's National Company, Samsung's 'Role Model'

The Wallenberg Group traces its origins to 1856 when Andr? Oscar Wallenberg, a former naval officer, founded Stockholms Enskilda Bank (now Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, SEB). It is currently a 'national company' accounting for one-third of Sweden's gross domestic product (GDP).

The Wallenberg Group is relatively unknown domestically despite its enormous corporate scale. This is due to the group's principle of 'existing but not revealing.' Although the Wallenberg Group has maintained family succession for five generations, ownership and management are strictly separated, with professional managers in charge of operations. It is also known for actively practicing social responsibility, such as returning dividends to society.

The group also has close ties with Samsung. The late Chairman Lee Kun-hee visited the Wallenberg family during a business trip to Sweden in 2003 and exchanged views on management systems. Samsung Chairman Lee Jae-yong invited the Wallenberg SEB chairman and his delegation, who visited Korea in 2012, to a dinner at the Leeum Museum of Art. In December 2019, Lee also met with Marcus Wallenberg, SEB chairman, who visited Seoul, to discuss cooperation between the two companies. Because of this, the Wallenberg Group was once mentioned as a potential future governance model for Samsung Group.

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