Hanguk & Company Minority Shareholder Alliance Expands into Shareholder Alliance

Plan to Launch Full-Fledged Governance Normalization Process, Including Recommendation of Outside Directors

The Minority Shareholder Alliance of Hanguk & Company announced on the 11th that it has decided to expand and transform the nature of its organization into a shareholder alliance.

Recently, a court handed down a ruling canceling the resolution of the general shareholders’ meeting regarding the director remuneration of Chairman Cho Hyunbum of Hanguk & Company. In relation to this, the alliance explained that, following the ruling, shareholders have continued to inquire about and request participation in matters concerning the company’s governance structure and the overall operation of the board of directors, and that it is therefore expanding and transforming the nature of the organization.

Exterior of Hanguk Aenkeompeoni Geurup headquarters, Technoplex. Hanguk Aenkeompeoni

Accordingly, the alliance will be operated as a coalition that is open to all shareholders who share concerns about enhancing corporate value and protecting shareholder rights, without being limited to a specific shareholding size or individual.

The alliance stated, "Triggered by this ruling, awareness of issues such as the appropriateness of the decision-making process on director remuneration, the board’s oversight function, and director accountability is spreading, and as a result, opinions and inquiries from a wide range of shareholders, beyond the existing minority shareholders, are being conveyed to the alliance."

The alliance also explained that former advisor Cho Hyunsik of Hanguk & Company has expressed that he agrees with the position of the Minority Shareholder Alliance. Based on shareholders’ views and the intent of the court ruling, the alliance intends to determine its future response and direction.

Previously, the court took issue with the fact that Chairman Cho Hyunbum was an interested party yet was involved in the process of approving the remuneration limit, and ruled that the relevant remuneration resolution violated procedures under the Commercial Act and canceled it.

Attorney Kim Hakyu, legal representative of the alliance, explained, "The ruling canceling Chairman Cho Hyunbum’s remuneration resolution has created a consensus among shareholders that the overall operation of the board of directors and the governance structure must be reviewed," adding, "Accordingly, the alliance has concluded that it needs to transition to a more inclusive shareholder participation structure."

Going forward, based on its expanded coalition structure, the alliance plans to proceed step by step with the full range of roles it can perform as a shareholder. This will include recommending outside directors, strengthening the board’s oversight function, reviewing the structure for determining director responsibilities and remuneration, and discussing institutional improvements to protect shareholder rights.

In line with this, the alliance is reviewing and preparing specific ways to exercise shareholder rights, including recommending candidates for outside director positions and submitting agenda items to the general shareholders’ meeting on director remuneration and responsibility. It plans to formally submit related proposals as shareholder proposals in accordance with the prescribed procedures in the future.

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