HDC-Asiana Airlines deal faces long delay Deal closing deadline likely to extend
Translated by Ryu Ho-joung 공개 2020-06-26 08:00:02
이 기사는 2020년 06월 26일 08:00 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.
Hyundai Development Company (HDC)’s acquisition of Asiana Airlines faces a long delay as the construction company is trying to renegotiate the deal in the COVID-19 environment.HDC signed an agreement in December 2019 to acquire Kumho Industrial’s stake in Asiana Airlines, which is South Korea’s second-largest carrier offloaded by then cash-strapped Kumho Asiana Group in its restructuring efforts. Both sides at that time agreed to close the deal by June 27, while the deadline can reportedly be extended as long as six months depending on regulatory approval.
However, little progress has been made during last few months in further discussions between HDC and the airline’s creditors led by the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) – which is HDC’s de facto negotiating counterparty – as the environment has changed significantly since Covid-19 started to take hold.
As the deal deadline approached, KDB last month sent HDC a certified request that the company make its position on the acquisition clear. In response, HDC on June 9 released a statement saying, “There is no change in our intention to take over Asiana Airlines.”
But the “acquisition terms must be renegotiated from square one,” HDC said, adding that for that reason it agrees with the idea of extending the deal closing deadline.
HDC also argued that “despite its efforts” to close the deal by the deadline, Asiana Airlines’ poor disclosure of information resulted in the necessity to take a fresh look at the acquisition. It said serious issues unpredictable at the time the deal was signed have been found, such as a large increase in debt recognized in the airline’s annual report at the end of 2019 and an external auditor’s negative opinion with the airline’s internal accounting control system.
KDB released a statement on June 17 to dispute that HDC’s arguments were not entirely based on a perspective of the facts. Since then the two sides have remained silent.
Industry watchers said that the delay in the deal closing was largely expected. The moves by KDB and HDC are seen as a fight to have an edge in future renegotiations, they added.
“Both a group of Asiana Airline’s creditors and HDC appear to be willing to renegotiate but have difficulties finding a breakthrough,” a source with knowledge of the deal said. “The deadline set on June 27 will eventually be extended and the deal closing will likely be delayed for a long time.”
Another source said, “The two sides reportedly continue to communicating with each other in written form but no agreement has been reached. Any decision could take longer than expected especially in this Covid-19 environment.”
(Reporting by Hee-yeon Han)
< 저작권자 ⓒ 자본시장 미디어 'thebell', 무단 전재, 재배포 및 AI학습 이용 금지 >
관련기사
best clicks
최신뉴스 in 전체기사
-
- [Board Index/카카오]뱅크와 페이 '경영자 승계정책' 무엇이 다를까
- [기업집단 톺아보기]파라다이스, 지배력 변수로 남은 CB 콜옵션
- [Board Index/네이버]이사회 전문분야 BSM 통해 구글과 비교해보니
- [VC 투자기업]닻 올린 네오젠TC 'TIL 치료제'…국내 최초 임상 시작
- [VC 투자기업]유호스트, 클라우드·스마트팩토리 덕 직상장 '청신호'
- [VC 투자기업]이지차저, '초급속' 전기차 충전기 확장 불붙었다
- [비상하는 K-우주항공 스타트업]김수환 페리지 CFO “필리핀·두바이 진출 모색”
- 디캠프, 일본 전선 넓힌다…모크토크·디데이 눈길
- [VC 투자기업]머스트잇, 프로덕트·테크 조직 통합…C레벨 개편
- 오영주의 '글로벌' 중기부, 한일 공동 벤처펀드 속도