[비즈한국] Binggrae005180 is set to absorb and merge with Haitai Ice Cream. Kim Ho-yeon, Chairman of Binggrae (71), has his eldest son, President Kim Dong-hwan (43), working at Binggrae, while his second son, Executive Director Kim Dong-man (38), is employed at Haitai Ice Cream. Once the merger is complete, both President Kim Dong-hwan and Executive Director Kim Dong-man are expected to work for the same company. Binggrae stated that nothing has been decided yet regarding the organizational structure after the merger.
On the 13th, Binggrae announced through a regulatory filing that it will absorb and merge with Haitai Ice Cream. Since Binggrae currently holds a 100% stake in Haitai Ice Cream, processes such as persuading minority shareholders or issuing new shares are unnecessary. The merger date is April 1, and the scheduled merger registration date is April 3. Binggrae cited "increased management efficiency and strengthened business competitiveness" as the reasons for the merger.
Haitai Ice Cream’s performance improved after being acquired by Binggrae in 2020, but it has recently stagnated. According to audit reports, Haitai Ice Cream’s revenue was: 156.4 billion won in 2020, 160.1 billion won in 2021, 174.9 billion won in 2022, 199.1 billion won in 2023, and 199.8 billion won in 2024. Haitai Ice Cream’s revenue for the first three quarters of last year was 163.4 billion won, a 5.89% decrease compared to the 173.6 billion won recorded during the same period in 2024.
In this situation, a merger between Binggrae and Haitai Ice Cream could lead to strengthened profitability. Binggrae stated that it plans to maximize profitability while increasing efficiency by integrating overlapping business organizations and unifying work processes following the merger.
The business world's attention is focused on Chairman Kim Ho-yeon's two sons. Chairman Kim has three children: his eldest son, Binggrae President Kim Dong-hwan, his eldest daughter, Kim Jung-hwa (42), and his second son, Haitai Ice Cream Executive Director Kim Dong-man. Currently, President Kim Dong-hwan works at Binggrae, and Executive Director Kim Dong-man works at Haitai Ice Cream. The business community has long considered President Kim Dong-hwan as Chairman Kim's successor, as he is the eldest son and Binggrae’s performance has recently been on an upward trend.
However, since no shares have been transferred, it is too early to discuss the succession structure. Currently, the largest shareholder of Binggrae is Chairman Kim Ho-yeon, with a 37.89% stake. Additionally, the Kim Koo Foundation and Jet-Dae hold 2.09% and 2.05% respectively. Jet-Dae is a logistics company where Chairman Kim’s three children each own a 33.33% stake. The Chairman's children do not hold direct shares in Binggrae.
Excluding Haitai Ice Cream and overseas subsidiaries, the only remaining affiliates of Binggrae are Jet-Dae and a self-storage business. Jet-Dae is essentially a private company of the owner family as it is entirely owned by Chairman Kim's three children, and the self-storage business is a subsidiary of Jet-Dae. Once Binggrae absorbs Haitai Ice Cream, it will effectively have no notable affiliates left. Binggrae previously pursued a transition to a holding company structure by establishing 'Binggrae Holdings' through a spin-off last year, but even that was eventually withdrawn. Because there are no affiliates, the possibility of Binggrae separating its affiliates is considered low.
President Kim Dong-hwan and Executive Director Kim Dong-man are expected to work together at the merged Binggrae entity. They will each need to prove their capabilities within the same company; since their revenue and performance metrics will be merged, it will become difficult to directly compare their individual management results. However, a Binggrae official said, "Nothing has been decided yet regarding the organization after the merger."