POSCO Post-Management Committee on 'Board's Lavish Business Trip Allegations': "Must Be Wary of Attempts to Gain by Undermining Trust"

After a 5-Hour Marathon Meeting, Late-Night Statement
"An Important Time to Elect the Group Chairman"
"Humbly Accepting the Purpose of Criticism"

The POSCO Holdings CEO Candidate Recommendation Committee (Candidate Committee) expressed regret on the 12th regarding media reports about the 'board of directors' luxury business trip suspicions.' The statement was released late at night immediately after a meeting that lasted about five hours from 7 p.m.

In the statement, the Candidate Committee said, "This is an important time as we are conducting a rigorous screening process to select the new chairman of the POSCO Group," and added, "We need to be cautious about any attempts to undermine the credibility of the Candidate Recommendation Committee for personal gain."

The Candidate Committee expressed "deep regret" concerning recent media criticisms about excessive expenses during the POSCO Holdings overseas board meeting held in Canada last August, stating, "We humbly accept the critical intent and pledge to be more prudent in the future."

They continued, "To fulfill the crucial mission of selecting a new chairman who will lead the future of the POSCO Group, all Candidate Committee members will act with greater restraint, humility, and unwavering dedication until the end."

On the night of April 26 last year, the POSCO building was illuminated. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

The Suseo Police Station in Seoul is investigating 16 individuals, including Choi Jeong-woo, chairman of POSCO Holdings and a board member, on charges of breach of duty. The POSCO Holdings board, including Chairman Choi, held a board meeting in Canada last August for a 5-night, 7-day schedule, spending approximately 680 million KRW in total.

The police consider that while it is in accordance with company regulations for POSCO Holdings to handle these expenses, the issue lies in the fact that the subsidiaries POSCO and POSCAN (POSCO-Canada) split the expenditures.

Additionally, the police are investigating whether the outside directors, who are current professors attending the board meeting, violated the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act. There are allegations that they stayed at luxury hotels and had extravagant meals during the Canada board meeting period.

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