Netmarble said on the 6th that it plans to buy Coway shares on the open market totaling 150 billion won over the next year.
Netmarble said after the market closed that it disclosed the total purchase size and direction through a filing and plans to first buy 40 billion won worth of shares in about a month.
This share purchase, totaling about 40 billion won, will run for about a month from May 7 to June 5.
Netmarble currently holds a 26% equity stake in Coway, and if the planned 150 billion won purchase is completed, the stake is expected to expand to the high-20% range.
The equity increase is expected to stabilize governance and also strengthen financial soundness. As the stake rises, equity-method gains will increase, and dividends revenue proportional to the held stake is also expected to grow.
Netmarble has secured 109.8 billion won in dividends revenue and 300 billion won in equity-method gains from Coway over the past three years.
Netmarble said, "This share purchase is a strategic investment that can achieve two goals at once: stabilizing governance and improving financial soundness," and added, "We will use part of the proceeds from monetizing investment assets, so there is no impact on the core game business."