Lim Jong-hoon, CEO of Hanmi Fine Chemical and the second son of the Hanmi Pharmaceutical (128940) Group family, will sell a 2.5% stake in holding company Hanmi Science (008930) to the NAU IB Fund. At the same time, Lim expressed his intention to carry on his father's founding spirit alongside his mother, Hanmi Pharmaceutical Group Chairwoman Song Young-sook, and his older sister, Vice Chairwoman Lim Ju-hyeon. Observers say the management control dispute between the owner family and Shin Dong-kuk, chairman of Hanyang Precision Chemical and Hanmi Science's largest shareholder, is entering its final stage.
According to the electronic disclosure system on the 2nd, Lim decided to sell 1,709,788 shares of Hanmi Science over the counter between the 5th of next month and September 3rd. The disposal price is 48,000 won per share, totaling 82.06982 billion won. After the sale, Lim will hold 1,774,020 shares of Hanmi Science, lowering his stake from the previous 5.09% to 2.59%.
In a statement released alongside the sale disclosure, Lim said, "Together with my mother and older sister, I will take on any role that can contribute to the company's development in order to carry on my father's (late Hanmi Pharmaceutical Group Chairman Lim Sung-ki) dream of 'serving the nation through pharmaceuticals.'" He added, "I hope this decision will also help stabilize the group's governance."
The Hanmi Science shares Lim is disposing of will be purchased by the NAU IB No. 22 fund. The NAU IB Fund is known to be an ally of the Hanmi Pharmaceutical owner family. Earlier, Shin was reported to have sought to acquire Lim's entire stake, but that plan fell through.
With Lim expressing his intention to align with his mother and sister, the owner family's Hanmi Science stake, including that of the Lim Sung-ki Foundation and the Gahyeon Cultural Foundation, rose to a total of 31.05%. Adding the 9.81% held by La Défense (Kilington Ltd.), an ally of the mother and daughter, brings the total to 40.86%, far surpassing Shin's 29.83% stake including that of Hanyang Precision Chemical. Regarding this, a pharmaceutical industry official explained, "It means the owner family has effectively succeeded in defending management control."
