This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 4:17 p.m. on Mar. 30, 2026.
Hanwha Group is pushing to sell its equity in Korea Zinc. It is said to be sounding out Hong Kong asset management firms for acquisition interest.
With Hanwha Solutions currently pursuing a paid-in capital increase of about 2.4 trillion won, the industry interprets the move as an attempt to sell Korea Zinc equity to secure funds needed to subscribe to new shares.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry and the business community on the 30th, Hanwha Group recently appointed a global IB as the lead manager and is pushing to sell Korea Zinc equity held by Hanwha and Hanwha Impact. To that end, it is understood to have distributed a teaser letter to Hong Kong-based asset managers.
According to the industry, multiple hedge fund managers are said to be interested in Korea Zinc equity. The demand is interpreted as an attempt to buy the equity at a discount to market price via an after-hours block deal and then resell to realize gains.
Hanwha Group currently holds a total of about 7.7% in Korea Zinc. Hanwha and Hanwha Impact hold 238,358 shares and 373,820 shares, respectively. Hanwha's share purchase price is known to be 658,000 won, and Hanwha Impact's purchase price is said to be under 500,000 won.
Separately, Hanwha Power Systems Global also holds 993,158 Korea Zinc shares, but whether that equity will be sold has not been decided.
Given that Korea Zinc's market capitalization is currently around 30.85 trillion won, the value of the equity held by Hanwha and Hanwha Impact is estimated to exceed 900 billion won.
The industry interprets Hanwha Group as seeking to sell Korea Zinc equity to raise funds for Hanwha Solutions' paid-in capital increase. On the 26th, Hanwha Solutions disclosed that it decided to carry out a paid-in capital increase by issuing 72 million new common shares. Through this, it plans to raise a total of 2.3976 trillion won to use for borrowing fund repayment and investment.
The paid-in capital increase will be conducted through a rights offering followed by a public offering of forfeited shares. For Hanwha, the largest shareholder of Hanwha Solutions, to participate in the subscription for new shares in proportion to its equity stake (36.31%), it is estimated to need about 870 billion won. That is a similar level to the value of the Korea Zinc equity held by Hanwha and Hanwha Impact.
If Hanwha Group, which has been classified as an ally of Korea Zinc Chairman Choi Yun-beom, sells part of its equity, Choi's side will be placed at a disadvantage in vote counts starting with the next shareholders meeting. Young Poong–MBK Partners currently holds a total of 42.1% of Korea Zinc's voting equity, while Choi's family and friendly shareholders Hanwha and LG Chem hold 27.9%. The U.S. JV holds 10.8%, and the remaining roughly 19% belongs to swing voters such as the National Pension Service and foreign institutions.
Regarding this, a Hanwha Group official said, "We have not officially reviewed (the sale of Korea Zinc equity)."