이 기사는 2022년 03월 22일 08시06분 thebell에 표출된 기사입니다

Hanwha Systems, the defense unit of South Korea’s Hanwha Group, has created five new subsidiaries at home and abroad over the last year alone as it pushes for expansion into new business areas in search for future growth.

The South Korea-based company gets the largest share of its revenue from its defense business, which represents about 70% of the company’s overall revenue. Its information and communication technology business roughly accounts for 28% of the total revenue, with the remainder coming from the company’s new businesses.

Hanwha Systems’ areas of focus for future growth include urban air mobility, satellite communication and digital platforms. While they are making tiny contribution to revenue at the moment, the company has doubled down on its investment in those areas, especially over the past year.

Last year Hanwha Systems USA, the company’s first US subsidiary, was established. It recently received 179.2 billion won ($147.8 million) in fresh capital from its parent company to use the funds to invest in the digital platforms space.

Hanwha Systems UK, which was created last October, is set to acquire 8.81% of OneWeb for 358.4 billion won. The move comes after its parent company agreed to invest $300 million in the British satellite firm in August last year.

Hanwha Systems had originally intended to buy the stake directly, but later changed its plan to proceed with the stake purchase through its UK subsidiary for efficient decision-making when investing additional funds in the country in the future.

The company’s US and UK subsidiaries are led by senior vice president Kwon Nae-hyun and executive vice president Yoo Dong-wan, respectively. They both are among the key figures spearheading Hanwha Systems’ expansion into new businesses.

Yoo, who also leads Hanwha Aerospace’s US unit, expanded his role last year to oversee Hanwha Systems’ aerospace business. Born in 1971, Yoo worked for LG Group and Boston Consulting Group before joining Hanwha Group in 2006. He is also one of the members of the conglomerate’s aerospace strategy team, Space Hub, spearheaded by Kim Dong-kwan, the family-controlled group’s heir apparent and chief executive of Hanwha Solutions.

Kwon was named as head of Hanwha Systems’ investment strategy team in March last year. Born in 1978, Kwon also has a consulting background with his senior roles at BCG and Credit Suisse before joining Hanwha Group in 2013.

Additionally, Hanwha Systems created two subsidiaries in South Korea last year through its holding company for investments in digital platforms, H Foundation Pte Ltd, which was established in Singapore in 2020.

One of the two new units is Enterprise Blockchain, which focuses on the gig economy and new technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence. The other is Vanila Studio, which targets Vietnamese consumers in the digital platform market.

Park Ki-woo and Lee Jun-seob lead Vanila Studio and Enterprise Blockchain, respectively. Both of them are fintech experts and had worked at Hanwha Life Insurance prior to their current roles.

Hanwha Systems also established a joint venture with vehicle-related sensor manufacturer Truwin last year to develop and produce infrared sensors used in autonomous driving and other automotive sensors. The venture, Hanwha Intelligence, is 50.83% owned by Hanwha Systems. (Reporting by Eun-a Jo)