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| Seo Seung-wook, the leader of Crew Union, consisting of unionized workers of Kakao and its affiliates, pickets in front of Pangyo Station in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday, to protest Kakao's plan to sell its stake in Kakao Mobility. Courtesy of Crew Union |
By Park Jae-hyuk
Kakao confirmed that it is considering stepping down as the largest shareholder of Kakao Mobility, prompting its unionized workers to resume their protest against the potential sale of the mobility subsidiary to a private equity firm (PEF).
"In order to enhance Kakao's shareholder value and enable sustainable growth of Kakao Mobility, Kakao is considering being the second-largest shareholder of Kakao Mobility by selling an approximate 10-percent stake," Kakao Chief Investment Officer Bae Jae-hyun said in a regulatory filing, Thursday, a day after he informed the company employees of the plan.
In response, Crew Union, a group of unionized workers of Kakao and its affiliates, said it resumed its campaign to collect signatures from the employees of Kakao and its affiliates, who oppose the sale of Kakao Mobility. The union suspended the campaign last week to participate in negotiations with the management.
The unionized workers have urged the management not to sell Kakao Mobility to a PEF. In the first meeting on June 27, however, the management reportedly said that it was not considering any alternative option.
Crew Union also asked Kakao founder Kim Beom-su to sit at the negotiation table, but the management refused to accept the request, saying that Kim Sung-su, who chairs Kakao's board of directors, has the right to make the final decision, according to the union.
"The planned sale seems to be intended to prevent the founder from being summoned to the National Assembly audit later this year," a Kakao Mobility worker said.
Kakao Mobility has faced intensifying regulations on its business after its conflict with taxi drivers.
Its initial public offering has also been uncertain, although Kakao will have to compensate its foreign shareholders, including U.S. investment firm TPG, unless it fulfills its promise to list Kakao Mobility on the stock market by the end of this year, according to industry officials.
At this moment, Kakao holds a 57.5-percent stake in Kakao Mobility, while TPG and Carlyle Group owns 29 percent and 6.2 percent, respectively.
MBK Partners is expected to acquire around a 10-percent stake in Kakao Mobility from Kakao and an additional stake from the U.S. PEFs, in order to become the largest shareholder of the mobility service provider.
Securities analysts expressed skepticism about Kakao's plan to sell its stake in Kakao Mobility.
"Given that it will lose one of its profit-making growth engines, its long-term growth potential could be weakened," Samsung Securities analyst Oh Dong-hwan said in his report, lowering his price target for Kakao's stock to 100,000 won ($77) from 120,000 won.
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