Lee Min-hyung joined The Korea Times in 2014 and has worked as a journalist mainly in Korea’s finance, tech and automotive industry. He specializes in content creation, breaking news and in-depth analysis currently on transportation and mobility. You can reach him via mhlee@koreatimes.co.kr.
NPS, Hoban pose increasing management threat to Hanjin KAL
Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae speaks during the firm's 80th anniversary event at a hotel in Seoul, Oct. 23, 2025. Yonhap
By Lee Min-hyung
Third-generation heir may weaken grip following possible exit of KDB capital
The National Pension Service (NPS) and Hoban Group are posing an increasing management threat to Hanjin KAL and its owner family ahead of the latter’s upcoming shareholders’ meeting slated for Thursday.
The state-run pension system has decided to oppose Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae’s reappointment as an internal director during Hanjin KAL’s regular shareholders’ meeting. Hanjin KAL is the holding firm of Hanjin Group.
The fund will also vote against the reappointment of Korean Air Vice Chairman Woo Kee-hong for the same position, citing “insufficient oversight” of actions that could undermine corporate value and infringe on shareholder rights. The NPS holds a 5.44 percent stake in Hanjin KAL.
It also went on to criticize Cho for having been compensated excessively despite Korean Air’s massive earnings fall last year. He received a combined salary worth 14.58 billion won ($9.73 million) from Hanjin KAL, Korean Air, Asiana Airlines and Jin Air in 2025.
The compensation is widely seen as unduly high, as Hanjin KAL recorded a deficit and Korean Air also reported a sharp operating profit drop of 47.2 percent during the same period, according to the NPS.
This is not the first time that the pension fund has opposed decisions from Hanjin Group and its key affiliates. In 2021, the NPS stepped up critical rhetoric against Korean Air’s acquisition of Asiana Airlines, citing poor due diligence, which the fund argued caused damages to shareholders.
Hoban Group’s growing presence also comes as a major risk factor to Hanjin KAL. Hoban is the second-largest shareholder of Hanjin KAL. As of the end of 2025, a combined stake of Cho and his related parties reached 20.56 percent in Hanjin KAL, only slightly ahead of Hoban’s 18.78 percent.
A Korean Air passenger jet is displayed with an updated corporate logo during an event at its hangar in Seoul, March 11, 2025. Joint Press Corps
Hoban has reiterated its position that the stake acquisition is only for “investment purposes,” but the firm is showing signs of gradually expanding its influence in key decision-making from Hanjin KAL. Hoban voted against a proposal to increase compensation limits for directors during a previous Hanjin KAL regulator shareholders’ meeting.
Even if the NPS and Hoban increase their influence in Hanjin KAL, the likelihood of Cho failing to secure reappointment as an internal director at the upcoming shareholders’ meeting remains low. Stakeholders aligned with Cho, including Delta Air Lines and the Korea Development Bank, hold stakes of 14.9 percent and 10.58 percent, respectively. Combined with Cho’s side, this brings the pro-management stake in Hanjin KAL to about 46 percent, comfortably outweighing opposing blocs.
However, there is still a long-term risk for Hanjin KAL due to the possible exit of the Korea Development Bank (KDB). The state-run lender is expected to divest its holdings in Hanjin KAL to recover public funds following the complete merger of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines.
In 2020, the KDB injected 800 billion won in Hanjin KAL to support Korean Air’s takeover of cash-strapped Asiana. A KDB exit would reduce the stake of those aligned with Cho to about 35 percent.
“The third-generation heir to the conglomerate is tasked with strengthening his management control in the group in the face of the opposing bloc,” an industry official said.