Woori Financial Group said Friday it has acquired Kukje Asset Trust, a local real estate trust company, in an effort to boost its nonbanking portfolio.
The financial holding firm signed a stock purchase agreement to acquire a combined controlling stake of 65.7 percent from Kukje Asset Trust Chairman Yoo Jae-eun and his partners.
Son Tae-seung (right), chairman of Woori Financial Group and CEO of Woori Bank, pose for a photo next to Yoo Jae-eun, chairman of Kukje Asset Trust, on Friday. (Woori Financial Group)
Woori said it has acquired the first batch of stock traded -- 44.5 percent -- and the remaining 21.27 percent will be acquired three years later, with Chairman Yoo keeping his leadership in the meantime.
Woori has held a 6.5 percent stake in Kukje Asset Trust since the mid-2000s, the company said.
According to Woori, it plans to bolster its subsidiaries’ assets and develop its real estate business, including loans and investment, through the acquisition.
This marks Woori Financial’s second acquisition deal after rebranding itself as a holding company earlier this year. It sealed a package deal in April to acquire Tongyang Asset Management and ABL Global Asset Management simultaneously, from China’s Anbang Group.
By Jung Min-kyung (
mkjung@heraldcorp.com)