[Aju News DB]
Nexon declined to confirm, but investment bank and related industrial sources said Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju notified bidding managers of his decision to put off the sale of Nexon's holding company, NXC, after Netmarble and Kakao failed to meet the price due to insufficient funds.
Kim owns 67.49 percent in NXC and his wife 29.43 percent. They have offered to sell their entire stake. The bidding schedule has been delayed twice in an attempt to attract major foreign investors such as Tencent, which distributes "Dungeon & Fighter" in China. More than 60 percent of Nexon's sales come from China.
On May 31, final bids were just sent by five candidates including South Korea's leading game publisher Netmarble, and Kakao, a major web service company, and three private equity funds. Game company officials have said the acquisition price, estimated at more than 10 trillion won ($8.6 billion) compared to two trillion won in annual sales, was too much.
Netmarble described Nexon's intangible and tangible value as South Korea's crucial asset, insisting that foreign ownership may damage the ecosystem of South Korea's game industry and weaken its competitiveness.
For Netmarble, Nexon is a big prey that can not be missed because it could become an indomitable player in the domestic game market. There has been a general consensus in South Korea's game industry that Nexon's intellectual properties should not be snatched by foreign companies, but both Netmarble and Kakao probably needed a partner loaded with cash because their spare money is not sufficient to absorb Nexon.
In 2018, Nexon's operating income rose nine percent on-year to 980.6 billion won and sales were up eight percent to 2.52 trillion won. There are low expectations on its performance this year due to growing uncertainties such as a U.S.-China trade war.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
