This article was published on Nov. 13, 2025, at 5:56 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove site.
It has been confirmed that Ihwa Group (now E Group) has emerged as the third buyer of ADBIOTECH, which has been having difficulty selling control. Ihwa Group had three listed companies—Ehwa Technologies Information, EID and ETRON—delisted in 2023 over allegations of embezzlement and breach of trust. Chairman Kim Young-jun of Ihwa Group was involved in those incidents and is currently on bail awaiting trial, but he has recently signaled a comeback in the capital markets by repeatedly acquiring KOSDAQ-listed companies.
According to the Financial Supervisory Service electronic disclosure system and sources in the investment banking industry, Kim Young-jun, chairman of Ihwa Group, is said to be behind the management change agreement ADBIOTECH disclosed on the 10th. ADBIOTECH announced at the time that it would change the third-party allotment for a paid-in capital increase from Lee Woon-jang, CEO of Orion E&C, to BK Partners Investment Association, but the person behind it had not been revealed.
ADBIOTECH has welcomed its third buyer in about six months since announcing the sale of its management rights. ADBIOTECH first moved to sell control on June 9. At that time, facing management difficulties and deciding to sell control, it approved a third-party allotment paid-in capital increase of about 28 billion won to the unlisted bio company Ocupe Bio M.
But about a month later, on July, it suddenly changed the acquisition candidate to the unlisted nuclear company Orion E&C. Orion E&C said it would convert ADBIOTECH into a nuclear power company and pursue new businesses such as small modular reactors (SMR) and nuclear power plant decommissioning.
The reason ADBIOTECH changed acquisition candidates three times appears to be largely due to suspicions raised about the earlier candidates. Ocupe Bio M's management is said to have been linked to the delisting of HYUNDAI FEED (formerly Canaria Bio). Orion E&C also faced questions about its nuclear-related technology and acquisition funds. In particular, because Orion E&C actually borrowed 1.5 billion won from ADBIOTECH, suspicions arose that it might not have the funds to complete the acquisition.
The problem is that Ihwa Group is not free from controversy either. Ihwa Group's three listed companies—Ehwa Technologies Information, EID and ETRON—have been delisted. Chairman Kim Young-jun and other executives are accused of embezzling and breaching trust involving about 100 billion won at those companies. They are also accused of reducing and concealing embezzlement and breach of trust and of trading instruments such as bonds with warrants (BW).
Chairman Kim is currently released on bail and facing trial, but he has shown active moves as if he judged that the legal risk is over. Ihwa Group acquired MiCo BioMed (now RollingStone) in July, securing a listed company about two years after the three Ihwa Group companies were suspended from trading.
A person familiar with the deal said, "I understand Ihwa Group will become ADBIOTECH's largest shareholder while the current management will keep control," adding, "It is known that there is some link between Ihwa Group's acquisition of MiCo BioMed and this ADBIOTECH acquisition."
The reason acquisition attempts continue for ADBIOTECH is that the company is small. With a market capitalization of only the 40 billion won range, forces seeking to secure a listed company keep showing up.
A source in the capital markets said, "ADBIOTECH's sales last year were 11.1 billion won, so sales themselves are decent, but operating and net income have been in the red for years and the company is under capital erosion," adding, "It will be necessary to pay attention to its moves after the acquisition process proceeds."