Electronics Land Hits Jackpot Amid Stock Market AI Boom

Konan Technology and Saltlux Announce 5% Stake Holding
Stake Value Grows from 29.6 Billion to 64.5 Billion Won in One Month

SYS Holdings, which operates in real estate leasing, and SYS Retail, which runs the electronics store Electron Land, have invested in AI companies Konan Technology and Saltlux, recording substantial valuation gains.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system, on the 2nd of last month, SYS Holdings, along with its affiliates SYS Retail and SYS Resort, acquired 5.53% (314,519 shares) of Konan Technology and 5.05% (515,792 shares) of Saltlux. The owner family, including Hong Bong-cheol, chairman of Electron Land, his wife Kim Ja-kyung, and eldest daughter Hong Yoo-sun, executive director, also participated in purchasing shares.

The purchase amounts for Konan Technology and Saltlux were 17.5 billion KRW and 12.1 billion KRW respectively, with average purchase prices of 55,619 KRW and 23,513 KRW per share. Within a month, the value of these holdings increased to 45.6 billion KRW and 18.9 billion KRW respectively. The valuation gain reached 34.9 billion KRW.

Looking at the performance by investment entity, SYS Holdings invested a total of 13.8 billion KRW in Konan Technology and Saltlux, which grew to 27.7 billion KRW within a month. The stock value held by Chairman Hong increased from 3.2 billion KRW to 7.5 billion KRW, and Executive Director Hong's stock value grew from 2.8 billion KRW to 6.5 billion KRW.

SYS Holdings is the largest shareholder of SYS Retail, holding 48.3% of its shares. SYS Retail operates the electronics retail chain Electron Land. Both Holdings and Retail have a history of investing in listed companies. According to the 2021 audit report, Holdings invested in LG, LG Display, LX Semicon, and LX Hausys, among others. The total investment based on purchase price amounted to 19.7 billion KRW. Although cash equivalents were only 400 million KRW in 2021, short-term trading securities amounted to 29.9 billion KRW. Retail also held short-term trading securities worth 19.3 billion KRW as of the end of 2021, exceeding its cash equivalents of 7.7 billion KRW.

SYS Holdings, which had mainly invested in large conglomerate affiliates, invested in Konan Technology and Saltlux, which surged this year, likely influenced by the increased interest in AI technology following OpenAI's release of ChatGPT. SYS Holdings explained that the investment was purely for investment purposes. It is interpreted that they invested expecting growth from Konan Technology and Saltlux, which have accumulated AI technology based on long-standing experience and are generating revenue through it. A Saltlux representative stated, "There were no special requests from SYS Holdings."

A securities industry insider explained, "Considering that SYS Holdings holds more than 5% of shares and has made disclosures, it does not appear to be an investment aimed at short-term capital gains." Major investors holding more than 5% of shares must disclose when realizing gains, which could expose their investment strategy and influence market prices.

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