Um Jae-kwang, Vice President of Business Analysis, interviewed by company newsroom
"Achieving net cash, striving for sustainable growth"
SK Hynix cash assets increase by KRW 1.6 trillion in one year
Um Jae-kwang, Vice President of Business Analysis at SK Hynix, said in an interview with the company-operated newsroom on the 10th, "This year, we will achieve net cash (a state where cash holdings exceed borrowings) to enable the company to take a bigger leap forward and strive for sustainable growth."
On the same day, Vice President Um stated, "We will realize 'Operation Improvement' 2.0 by quantifying the effects of process and structural improvements rather than simple cost-cutting and establishing an advanced management system."
Vice President Um joined SK Hynix in 2004 in the manufacturing/technology division and currently leads the business analysis organization, which is a key pillar of the company's finance. Although SK Hynix posted an operating loss of KRW 7.7303 trillion in 2023 during the 'semiconductor winter,' it recorded an operating profit of KRW 23.4673 trillion (operating margin 35%) last year.
The company explains that the foundation of this record-breaking performance was not only product competitiveness but also the strategic support of the business analysis organization. The business analysis team plays a role in improving the financial environment through profit and loss management, cost and profitability analysis, and economic simulations.
Vice President Um said, "Due to difficulties during the downturn period, establishing a stable financial environment was the top priority last year," adding, "The business analysis organization has done its best to optimize resources by timely calculating and analyzing profits and losses according to rapidly changing conditions and to strengthen fundamental competitiveness."
In particular, following last year, this year they plan to increase cash and cash equivalents and gradually reduce borrowings through various operational improvement efforts. Vice President Um explained, "We aim to continue making decisions that satisfy not only finance but also manufacturing/technology operations," and "Based on this, we will establish more sophisticated and practical financial strategies."
SK Hynix has been continuously increasing its cash equivalents. According to the audit report disclosed by the company, SK Hynix's cash and cash equivalents rose from KRW 3.5021 trillion in 2023 to KRW 5.0984 trillion last year, an increase of about KRW 1.6 trillion within one year.
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