Preemptive Block of Mutual Share Voting Rights Restriction Attempt
Yeongpung and MBK Partners, who are engaged in a management rights dispute with Choi Yoon-beom, chairman of Korea Zinc, have filed an injunction request with the court to ensure that they can lawfully exercise their voting rights at the regular shareholders' meeting scheduled for the 28th. This measure aims to preemptively block the chairman's side from attempting to use the 'mutual share restriction' method again, which involves affiliated companies purchasing the opponent's shares to prevent the exercise of voting rights, as was done at the previous extraordinary shareholders' meeting.
On the 18th, Yeongpung and MBK announced that they had filed the 'injunction to allow voting rights exercise' application with the Seoul Central District Court on the 16th. This is because the chairman's side is showing signs of trying to restrict voting rights again, as they did at the last extraordinary shareholders' meeting.
The chairman's side claimed that a new mutual share relationship was formed, restricting Yeongpung's voting rights, when 'Sun Metal Corporation (SMC),' an Australian affiliate of Korea Zinc, transferred its 10.3% stake in Yeongpung to its parent company 'Sun Metal Holdings (SMH)' on the 12th. Previously, the chairman's side had created a situation where SMC held a 10.3% stake in Yeongpung the day before the extraordinary shareholders' meeting in January, limiting the voting rights of Yeongpung and MBK and passing all desired agendas. However, the Seoul Central District Court accepted Yeongpung and MBK's injunction request, which argued that this method was problematic, and ruled that most of the agendas at that shareholders' meeting were invalid.
On the 13th, the chairman's side also resolved at the board meeting to appoint four acting chairpersons in the order of Seo Dae-won, Hwang Deok-nam, Lee Min-ho, and Kim Do-hyun in case of the absence of CEOs Park Ki-duk and Jung Tae-woong. This is interpreted as an intention to retain the chair position and lead the shareholders' meeting.
A representative of Yeongpung and MBK Partners said, "There is still a risk of illegal and unilateral restriction of voting rights at the shareholders' meeting site," adding, "As one of the means to protect legitimate voting rights, we intend to obtain a court injunction allowing the exercise of voting rights before the shareholders' meeting."
The temporary shareholders' meeting of Korea Zinc held at the Grand Hyatt Seoul in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, is in progress on the afternoon of the 23rd. Photo by Jo Yong-jun
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