[미디어SR 정혜원 기자] The Hyosung Group recently submitted an application to the Fair Trade Commission for the change of the same person (total number) of the Fair Trade Commission, and it seems that the change of generations in the business world is official. It is known that Hyundai Motor Company has also applied for change of the same person.
An official from the FTC said on the 2nd to Media SR that “Hyosung has applied for a change of the same person,” and “However, we cannot confirm whether Hyundai Motor Company and other corporate groups have applied for it.”
According to the FTC, Hyosung Group recently submitted an application for change of the same person (total number) to the FTC.
It is reported that honorary Chairman Cho Seok-rae applied for the change of the same person for reasons of health. This is because it is known that the hospital medical certificate of Honorary Chairman Cho Seok-rae was submitted together.
Each year, the Fair Trade Commission selects a group of companies that are subject to disclosure and restricts circular investment, and appoints the person who actually controls the company as the same person.
Since the same person is responsible for all the data designated by the corporate group, the scope of the company subject to the sanctions for private interests in the family varies depending on who the FTC designates as the same person.
Honorary Chairman Cho has been accused of evacuating taxes worth 130 billion won, but in December of last year, the Supreme Court judged part of the charges of evading corporate tax as innocent and guilty of illegal dividends and returned the case to the Seoul High Court. At the second trial, he was sentenced to three years in prison, but was not imprisoned in court considering his health status.
The FTC considers the health status of the same person when designating the same person.
In addition, the business community believes that the appointment of the same person may affect the execution of the sentence of Honorary Chairman Cho in the future. The Criminal Procedure Act allows a prisoner to suspend execution when there is a concern that a prisoner may harm his health or cannot preserve his or her life due to execution of a sentence.
Accordingly, it is known that there are not many differences within the FTC as to whether the request for change should be accepted due to this situation.
Honorary Chairman Cho resigned from the management front line in 2017, and the first chairman Cho Hyun-joon is leading the third-generation management of Hyosung Group. As of the end of September last year, Chairman Cho owns 21.94% of the holding company, and Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-sang, the youngest of the three brothers, owns 21.42%.
It is known that Hyosung Group also submitted a document to the Fair Trade Commission stating that it would delegate some of the voting rights (9.43%) of the shares of Honorary Chairman Cho to Chairman Cho Hyun-joon.
They can be the same person if the ownership interest has at least a large impact on the company’s decision-making. Previously, in 2018, the FTC changed Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong to the same person as the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee’s illness lengthened.
Hyosung said, “Honorary Chairman Cho Seok-rae is 85 years old this year, and he is in a very unhealthy situation due to recurrence of gallbladder cancer, a chronic disease.” I believe that it is reasonable to change the designation.”
It is known that Hyundai Motor Company has also submitted data to the FTC that it intends to change the next same person from Honorary Chairman Chung Mong-koo to Chairman Eui-seon Eui-seon.
If the same person is changed, the total number of Hyundai Motors will change in 21 years. Following the inauguration of Chairman Eui-sun Chung in October of last year and the resignation of the registered director of Hyundai Mobis this year, the “Era of Jeong Eui-seon” is expected to begin with the change of the same person.
In addition, Hyundai Motor Company is expected to accelerate its corporate governance restructuring to resolve the circular investment structure of Hyundai Mobis, Hyundai Motors, and Kia. Among major domestic conglomerates, Hyundai Motor Group is the only one that has yet to break through the circular investment structure.
In this regard, the management succession of LS Group and Daelim Group will become visible and change of the same person will be predicted.
However, as of 2020, the same person of LS Group stayed with Jahong Gu. Ja-hong Koo, chairman of LS Nikko Copper, served as chairman of LS Co., Ltd. for 9 years from 2004 to 2013.
LS Group has been handing over management rights to his cousin every 10 years, and the eldest son of the late E1 Honorary Chairman Koo Pyeong-hoi, Chairman Koo Ja-Yeol, has taken over the position of LS Co., Ltd. since 2013 and has been leading the group.
The business community expects that the succession of management is expected to accelerate as the current LS Group chairman Koo Ja-yeol has been appointed as the head of the Korea International Trade Association, which is close to a full-time position.
Ja-eun Koo, chairman of LS Mtron and head of LS Group’s Future Innovation Group, is the largest shareholder with a 3.63% stake in LS, and is expected to become chairman of LS, a holding company, as early as this year.
Meanwhile, in January 2019, Daelim Group Vice Chairman Lee Hae-wook took office as chairman, but the same person of Daelim Group was held as honorary chairman Lee Jun-yong. Chairman Lee Hae-wook has already occupied the largest shareholder of Daelim Group’s holding company, and is in charge of the management of the group, in fact, taking the role of general manager.
In addition, Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings, Shinsegae Group, CJ Group, and Kolon Group are also pursuing management succession.
However, there is a prospect that prediction is not easy because the FTC has maintained a conservative attitude toward the change of the same person.