This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 4:13 p.m. on Sept. 14, 2026.
The Born Korea, a dining franchise company led by Paik Jong-won, has been slow to expand outward through mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Although it allocated more than 90% of its IPO proceeds to M&A funds for acquiring other corporations' securities at the time it pursued a listing, it is understood that it has not spent a single won for nearly two years. In the investment banking (IB) industry, however, some expect The Born Korea to embark on M&A within the year.
According to the IB industry on the 14th, The Born Korea has left 95% of the IPO proceeds (101 billion won) raised in 2024 unexecuted. Considering that about 5.1 billion won (5%) of the executed funds were issuance expenses such as acquisition fees, a net 96.9 billion won remains intact.
The Born Korea is running the entire net 96.9 billion won solely for interest business. Specifically, it deposited the funds in short-term financial products such as time deposits (45.6 billion won) and commercial papers issued by Korea Investment & Securities Co. and NH Investment & Securities (46.3 billion won and 5 billion won, respectively). The company is estimated to have earned around 2 billion won a year in interest income from the deposits and bills.
The Born Korea had previously said it would use the IPO proceeds to acquire other corporations' securities and for operating funds. Presenting M&A as a post-listing growth strategy, it allocated 93.5 billion won, more than 90% of the proceeds, for acquiring other corporations' securities. Only about 3.4 billion won was left for operating funds.
It also nailed down the investment timeline. It planned to spend 20 billion won in 2025, 30 billion won in 2026, and 43.5 billion won in 2027. Initially, it had allocated 10 billion won in 2025, 20 billion won in 2026, and 32.8 billion won in 2027, but after the offering price was set at 34,000 won, above the top end of the band (28,000 won), it increased the investment scale.
The Born Korea even presented investment targets. It said it would use 80 billion won to acquire and secure equity in wholesale and retail specialty food companies, and 13.5 billion won to acquire equity in Foodtech-related companies. The view emerged that, by using existing cash along with acquisition financing, it could even acquire a mid-sized food company.
But a string of controversies has blocked The Born Korea's expansion of business using M&A. As various headwinds piled up—including a price controversy over its canned ham brand "Paik Ham," allegations of violating the Farmland Act, and alleged violations of the Food Labeling and Advertising Act—consumer trust fell, putting it in a situation where investment is difficult.
The year after listing, The Born Korea was even mentioned as a candidate to acquire Norang Food, the operator of the chicken franchise "Norang Tongdak," but it made no further progress. It was conveyed that the judgment was that acquiring a chicken franchise at a time of falling consumer trust could backfire.
Subsequently, The Born Korea was mentioned as a strategic investor in the bidding to acquire the eco-friendly distribution company Chorok Maeul, but it did not move on to submitting a letter of intent or a main bid. At The Born Korea's shareholders' meeting in March, Paik said, "We spent a 'lost year' last year due to numerous complaints and accusations."
The Born Korea, which put forward M&A as a growth strategy at the time of listing, has instead reduced its subsidiaries. That is because it liquidated Food Incu, a liquor wholesale specialist, last year. It did, however, acquire additional equity in Cook Solution, a kitchen automation equipment specialist, converting it into a wholly owned subsidiary, but it did not use IPO proceeds.
There are also expectations that The Born Korea will ramp up M&A starting in the second half of this year. That is because securing growth engines has become even more urgent due to worsening results. The company's consolidated revenue last year was 361.2 billion won, down 22.2% from a year earlier, and it swung to a loss with an operating loss of 23.7 billion won.
It also bolstered its M&A execution capability by bringing in an outside expert. In April, The Born Korea is understood to have newly appointed Executive Director Seo Chang-won to the strategic planning division. Seo is known as a growth and finance strategy expert who handled strategic planning and M&A at CJ Group, GC Wellbeing, and Global Sae-A.
An IB industry official said, "The fact that The Born Korea has been earning only interest income for nearly two years after listing, despite having M&A dry powder, is largely due to overlapping owner risks," adding, "Given that its financial capacity is sufficient, the key will be the timing of execution."
Meanwhile, The Born Korea says it has selected wholesale and retail specialty food companies as its top-priority M&A targets and continues to review candidates. A company representative said, "We are at a stage where we are continuously looking at deals that can be growth engines for the company," while adding, "It is hard to say exactly when something will be concluded."