[Market Focus] Woongjin Surges on Acquisition of Funeral Service Company Preedlife

As of 9:40 a.m. on April 30, Woongjin, the holding company of Woongjin Group, was trading at 1,275 won on the Korea Exchange, up 17.73%. This appears to be due to the announcement of the acquisition of the funeral service company Preedlife the previous day.

Woongjin Group operates businesses in publishing and educational services (Woongjin ThinkBig, Woongjin Compass), domestic and international logistics distribution (Woongjin Booksen, Woongjin Eversky), entertainment, culture, and sports services (Woongjin Playdoci), golf course and sports facility operations (Lexfield Country Club), cultural experience and play platform business (Woongjin Compass), and cosmetics sales (Woongjin Hucom). With the acquisition of Preedlife, the group is expected to strengthen synergies by enhancing connections with its existing affiliates' businesses.

Previously, on April 29, Woongjin announced that it had signed a share purchase agreement (SPA) to acquire 99.77% of Preedlife shares held by private equity fund manager VIG Partners for 883 billion won. After paying a deposit of 88.3 billion won, the acquisition will be completed once the remaining balance is paid by the end of May. The acquisition funds will be sourced by utilizing existing assets, as well as through the issuance of perpetual bonds and acquisition financing, without a capital increase.

As of the end of last year, Preedlife was the No. 1 company in the Korean funeral service industry, holding 2.56 trillion won in advance payments. Woongjin Group stated that it plans to turn Preedlife into a "total life care platform."