AUS
NZ
UK
CA
USA
FRA
GER
ESP
ITA
NLD
PRT
SWE
GRC
IND
POL
BRA
ZAF
RUS
CHN
UAE
- Despite holding only 25%, Netmarble’s outsized influence over Coway casts serious doubt on how effectively conflicts are managed
- Align Partners urges capital structure optimization and stronger governance at Coway to ensure all shareholders’ interests are protected – not only that of Netmarble
- Align Partners’ Presentation is available at https://www.bside.ai/coway/feed/1206
Align Partners Capital Management Inc. ("Align Partners"), a shareholder of Coway Co., Ltd. (KRX: 021240) ("Coway" or the “Company”) owning 2.8%, has published a presentation calling for improvements in Coway’s governance and capital allocation.
Netmarble Corp. (“Netmarble”), with a 25.1% stake, wields disproportionate control over Coway. This influence is entrenched through its founder serving as Executive Chair, a former Netmarble executive as CEO, and a director nomination process overseen by Netmarble, raising serious governance concerns.
Coway’s governance structure, with obvious conflicts of interest, has failed to protect minority shareholders’ interests. This was starkly demonstrated when Coway’s Netmarble-influenced leadership slashed the shareholder return policy from 90% to 20%. Since then, accumulated earnings have not been effectively utilized, weighing down ROE and valuations. Coway’s rushed January 6th announcement to raise the shareholder return ratio to 40% risks lowering its already low leverage multiple (1.0x vs. industry 2.2x), further reducing ROE and valuations.
The market’s concerns are evident in Coway’s valuation decline, with its PBR falling from 6.0x on December 30th, 2019, when Netmarble became its largest shareholder, to 1.5x today. This sharp drop reflects eroded investor confidence and the urgent need for Coway to address governance shortcomings, optimize its capital structure, and limit Netmarble’s influence. Align Partners has specifically urged Coway to:
- Strengthen its governance by making its Board truly independent to ensure fair representation of minority shareholders’ interests against that of only Netmarble’s.
- Adopt a target capital structure policy, focused on maintaining an appropriate Net Debt to EBITDA multiple, which would enable an improved shareholder return policy.
We have asked Coway to respond to the requests and key questions asked by February 3, 2025. For details, visit www.bside.ai/coway, and contact us at [email protected].
About
Align Partners is an investment company with a focus on Korea. Led by CEO Changhwan Lee, Align Partners leverages expertise in private equity and investment banking to drive sustainable growth, engaging with portfolio companies to address the "Korea discount."
https://www.alignpartnerscap.com/en/.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250121738153/en/
