Amid Chinese Capital Controversy... MBK Asserts Independence with US CFIUS Approval

MBK Partners has refuted the controversy surrounding the inflow of Chinese capital, stating that it "received approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)."

On May 7, MBK Partners announced that it had obtained CFIUS approval in the first quarter of this year regarding its investment in Makino Milling Machine, a Japanese machine tool company. Makino Milling Machine operates a facility in Ohio, United States, employing about 600 staff members, which made the company subject to CFIUS review.

MBK stated, "CFIUS approval was granted after a comprehensive review of the deal structure, governance, investor composition, and the independence of the management company," adding, "This demonstrates our professionalism and independence as a general partner (GP) private equity manager."

The company has thus blocked the controversy over the inflow of Chinese capital. Korea Zinc had raised concerns about indirect Chinese investment in key national industries, citing the approximately KRW 500 billion investment by China Investment Corporation (CIC), China's sovereign wealth fund, into MBK Partners’ sixth fund. MBK responded, "Through the CFIUS review, it was confirmed that the structure entirely prevents the possibility of external influence over investor composition and governance."

MBK also commented that the recent hiring of The McKeon Group, a defense and security-focused lobbying firm in Washington D.C., was a standard procedure. The company said, "Obtaining CFIUS-related advisory is a proactive measure for a global investment management firm to review and comply with relevant regulations."

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