This article was posted on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 9:20 a.m. on Dec. 3, 2025.
The Technology, a KOSDAQ-listed company undergoing delisting procedures due to financial difficulties, has appeared in the KOSDAQ mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market, drawing attention. The Technology's situation is poor enough that a delisting decision was made after its sales fell below 3 million won for two consecutive quarters, but it recently spent about 8 billion won to acquire KOSPI-listed Exicure Hitechron. A distressed corporation that was being pushed out of the market invested a significant amount of money in another company.
Yusu, who was Exicure Hitechron's largest shareholder, has been pursuing the sale of management rights since September. Because the existing security solution business languished and the bio business identified as a new growth engine failed to produce results, the company decided to relinquish management rights about two years after the acquisition.
According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on the 3rd, The Technology stepped in during the process in which Exicure Hitechron's largest shareholder was set to change through a third-party allotment capital increase while delisting procedures are underway.
The Technology, together with another KOSDAQ-listed company, secured about 10 million shares by adding 7,080,530 new shares and 3,004,500 existing shares to become the largest shareholder. They held an extraordinary shareholders meeting on the 28th of last month and replaced the management, effectively taking over management rights.
The Technology paid a high price to acquire management rights of listed Exicure Hitechron while the company was under a trading suspension. The Technology bought the equity held by Yusu, LeadUnion and Golden Road at 1,240 won per share. Considering that Exicure Hitechron's stock price had been stuck at 500 won at the time, this represents a premium of more than double. Controversy arose over the expensive purchase given that Exicure Hitechron has reported net losses for more than three years recently.
What drew attention was that Exicure Hitechron was suddenly suspended from trading on the 21st, a week before the extraordinary shareholders meeting. The reason was an embezzlement allegation involving about 15 billion won by former management figure a person surnamed Kim. The embezzlement was confirmed in May, but the information was belatedly disclosed only six months later.
Typically, such deals fall through. It is common to try to cancel the contract through litigation without paying the remaining balance. The Technology did cancel some purchases of existing shares and postponed the schedule for the third-party allotment capital increase after Exicure Hitechron's trading suspension, changing its investment plan. However, it completed the purchase of the equity held by former largest shareholder Yusu and finished appointing management through the extraordinary shareholders meeting as planned.
In this regard, people in the capital markets industry are raising suspicions that this may have been an insider transaction.
The background of such suspicions is that Andy Yu, CEO of Yusu, who succeeded in exiting alone, was once a shareholder of The Technology. CEO Yu is known to have acquired The Technology in 2023 through the PNS Industry fund funded by Multo and to have effectively controlled the company until recently. Yu served as Multo's CEO in 2016. The equity of PNS Industry that Multo held was transferred in October to DB Investment and Fast Round, but they are also known to be figures involved with HYUNDAI FEED (formerly Canaria Bio), Edison Motors and other entities that had past controversies over stock manipulation and cashless M&A. Andy Yu is known to be a black-haired foreigner with Australian nationality.
A person familiar with the deal said, "This is no different from using funds from The Technology, which was subject to a trading suspension, to exit Exicure Hitechron at a high price that was scheduled for trading suspension," and added, "The stock manipulation force that was involved in HYUNDAI FEED and Edison Motors is entangled in this deal."