Exclusive: EQT Partners Proposes 120,000 Won Per Share for The Zohn Biz-On Stake

0 0 Wednesday, October 15, 2025

This article was posted on the Chosun Biz Money Move (MM) site at 11:04 a.m. on September 22, 2025. EQT Partners, the operator of the Swedis...

This article was posted on the Chosun Biz Money Move (MM) site at 11:04 a.m. on September 22, 2025.

EQT Partners, the operator of the Swedish Valenberry family private equity fund, PEF, proposed 120,000 Korean won per share to acquire management rights of The Zohn Biz-On. This recognizes a control premium of over 100% compared to last May, before sale rumors began to take shape. EQT Partners and the largest shareholder are expected to sign a stock purchase agreement, SPA, as early as the end of this month.

According to the investment banking, IB, industry on the 22nd, EQT Partners is continuing negotiations with Kim Yong-woo, Chairman of The Zohn Biz-On, the largest shareholder, regarding the sale of management rights. The transaction targets a total of 31.4%, including Chairman Kim’s 21.5% stake and a 9.9% stake held through Shinhan Investment & Securities’ special purpose company, SPC, ‘Shinhan Value-Up First’.

Chairman Kim is reported to have previously demanded around 4 trillion Korean won in market capitalization as the price for The Zohn Biz-On. If EQT Partners’ proposal of 120,000 Korean won per share is accepted, the sale would be completed at a market capitalization of around 3.6 trillion Korean won. Progress appears to have been made in the sale of management rights, as Chairman Kim’s side has shown willingness to agree on the price. As of 11 a.m. on the same day, The Zohn Biz-On’s stock price was 86,500 Korean won.

The amount proposed by EQT Partners is at the highest level in The Zohn Biz-On’s history. In September 2020, when liquidity was abundant due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company’s stock price surged to 126,500 Korean won on a closing price basis. Later, as the transition to endemic and poor performance overlapped, the stock price fell to the 20,000 Korean won range. After pushing to establish an internet bank, the stock price recovered to 70,000 Korean won, but it dropped back to the 50,000 Korean won range after withdrawing the project.

Chairman Kim is reported to have decided to completely withdraw from management without reinvesting in The Zohn Biz-On after this stake sale. In cases where a largest shareholder sells a company they founded to a PEF operator, part of the sale proceeds is sometimes reinvested into an SPC established by the PEF operator to assist in management. However, Chairman Kim is reported to have little intention of doing so.

EQT Partners is likely to use the upcoming 20 trillion Korean won Asia blind fund for the acquisition financing. For acquisition financing, discussions are ongoing with NH Investment & Securities and Korea Investment & Securities. The industry is also speculating on the possibility of a public tender offer for the remaining shares of The Zohn Biz-On, given NH Investment & Securities’ participation in the acquisition financing.

Following the acquisition of human resources management, HR, solution provider Remember & Company, EQT Partners plans to take the lead in the domestic business process outsourcing, BPO, market by also acquiring The Zohn Biz-On. BPO refers to the method of outsourcing core business tasks such as procurement, human resources, and accounting to external professional companies. The Zohn Biz-On is the second-largest player in the corporate accounting processing sector, and Remember & Company is also expanding its business into human resources and recruitment.

Founded in 1977, The Zohn Biz-On is a leading domestic information and communications technology, ICT, company providing enterprise digitalization solutions, cloud services, enterprise resource planning, ERP, and accounting and tax software. Over 60% of sales are generated from the ERP sector. Last year, the company recorded sales of 402.3 billion Korean won and operating profit of 88 billion Korean won.