It has been confirmed that the largest shareholder of Dong Sung Bio Pharm, which is embroiled in a management control dispute, urgently convened a board meeting to oust CEO Na Won-gyun, then abruptly postponed the schedule. The reason was a failure to secure the necessary number of directors, and some read this as a sign of internal division at the largest shareholder, Brand Refactoring.
According to the industry on the 19th, Brand Refactoring, the largest shareholder of Dong Sung Bio Pharm, hurriedly convened a board meeting that afternoon. They were slated to discuss dismissing CEO Na Won-gyun at the meeting. But the board did not open, and the meeting was postponed to the 25th of this month.
The board failed to meet that day because one of the four newly appointed directors did not attend. Earlier, at an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders held on the 12th, Dong Sung Bio Pharm newly appointed three inside directors and one outside director. The newly appointed directors are figures from the largest shareholder, Brand Refactoring, which secured a majority on the board (four of seven).
Brand Refactoring, which rose to become the largest shareholder by acquiring equity from former Chairman Lee Yang-gu, a second-generation owner-manager, is locked in a management control dispute with CEO Na Won-gyun, a third-generation owner and nephew of former Chairman Lee. In the process, CEO Na filed for corporate rehabilitation with the court, which accepted it and appointed Na as court-appointed administrator.
However, Brand Refactoring alleges embezzlement and breach of trust by Na. Inside and outside the company, the abrupt collapse of the board meeting that day is fueling suspicions of internal division within Brand Refactoring. In particular, with one director refusing to attend, some interpret the move as that director shifting to a stance somewhat at odds with Brand Refactoring.