[마켓인]“Even if I disagree, it passes one after another”… Face-Down National Pension

[이데일리 이광수 조해영 기자] The national pension lost face again this time. Following the spin-off agenda for LG Chem’s battery division last year, Korean Air exercised the right to vote against the agenda to change the articles of incorporation for a paid increase, but it was finally passed. Experts appreciate the independence of the National Pension Trustee Responsibility Committee (trusted committee), but expressed concern about making decisions that are far from the market for several years.

[이데일리 문승용 기자]

According to the National Pension Service on the 6th, as of the end of the third quarter of last year, the national pension had exercised a total of 523 opposition voting rights, but only seven of them were actually rejected. In terms of specific gravity, it is only 1.34%.

This phenomenon is not yesterday and today. In 2017, 7 out of 373 cases were rejected, showing a rejection rate of 1.87%, and 1.11% of 539 cases in 2018. Among the 625 cases in 2019, the proportion of rejections, including 3.36%, was only 1~3%, and it was analyzed that there were not many cases that resulted in actual rejections as intended by the National Pension Plan.

In response, Seo Ji-yong, professor of business administration at Sangmyung University, said, “When the market is not always right, but generally reflecting the opinions of shareholders, I am concerned about the national pension making a decision that is separate from the market every time.” There is” he said. It can be said that there is independence of the entrusted committee, but it is a problem that it is not possible to persuade other shareholders in the end, as many pointed out that the selection was recommended by interest groups such as employers, workers, and local subscribers. In the case of the Gukjeong Nongdan incident, there are also talks about whether it was the decision to cover cotton, as it was perplexed for favoring the merger between Samsung C&T and Cheil Worldwide.

An official from the IB industry said, “The national pension tends to be judged by weighing on the deterioration of the value of minority shareholders, but the actual stock price is often reversed.” In the case of LG Chem, which voted against last year, it was 600,000 won at the time of voting against it, but ended at 890,000 won that day. Korean Air closed the decline on that day, but showed an increase at one time during the day, and fell 0.35% based on the closing price, only weakening.

However, there are opinions that even though opinions differ from other shareholders, investors and markets need them. Hwang Se-woon, a research fellow at the Capital Markets Research Institute, said, “There is no big problem even if the owners are almost in control of the listed shareholders’ meetings in Korea.” It is to play a role of holding the people.”