[비즈한국] It has been confirmed that Wabi-Sabi Holdings, the preferred bidder for the acquisition of Bucket Studio066410, has conducted two capital increases this year. As a result, Wabi-Sabi Holdings' total equity has increased from 9 billion won to 24 billion won. The largest shareholder of Wabi-Sabi Holdings has also changed from Korea Heat to Switchwon. However, compared to the 240 billion won acquisition price for Bucket Studio, the capital is still insufficient. Attention is focused on whether Wabi-Sabi Holdings will be able to complete the acquisition of Bucket Studio without incident.
Bucket Studio announced last December that Wabi-Sabi Holdings would acquire the stakes held by major shareholders of Bucket Studio. The stakes to be acquired amount to 37% of Bucket Studio held by three parties: Initial No. 1 Investment Association, Vidente121800, and Bucket Studio CEO Kang Ji-yeon. Wabi-Sabi Holdings plans to complete the final payment for the stake acquisition by March 31.
Bucket Studio is a company with deep ties to Bithumb. The largest shareholder of Bithumb Holdings is DAA with a 34.20% stake, and the second-largest shareholder is Vidente with a 30.00% stake. DAA is known to be controlled by Bithumb A CEO Lee Jung-hoon, and Vidente is a granddaughter company of Bucket Studio. Since the difference in stake between DAA and Vidente is not significant, the company that acquires Bucket Studio could rise to a position that exerts influence over Bithumb as well.
Wabi-Sabi Holdings, the preferred bidder for the acquisition of Bucket Studio, is a special purpose company (SPC) established last December. The entities that led the establishment of Wabi-Sabi Holdings are Switchwon and Korea Heat. Korea Heat was established for the purpose of setting up medical centers and has not made any specific mention regarding Wabi-Sabi Holdings (Related article: Who are ‘Switchwon and Korea Heat’, the companies acquiring Bucket Studio via the Bithumb equity chain?).
According to the disclosure, Wabi-Sabi Holdings' total equity at the end of last year was 9 billion won. At that time, Korea Heat's stake in Wabi-Sabi Holdings was 77.78%, meaning it had invested approximately 7 billion won. Bizhankook's investigation confirmed that Wabi-Sabi Holdings carried out two capital increases this year. After the capital increase, Wabi-Sabi Holdings' total equity increased to 24 billion won. It was not disclosed exactly who participated in the capital increase.
According to recent disclosures, the largest shareholder of Wabi-Sabi Holdings has changed to Switchwon. This suggests that Switchwon participated in the Wabi-Sabi Holdings capital increase. Switchwon's current stake in Wabi-Sabi Holdings is 41.67%. Based on this, the amount Switchwon has invested in Wabi-Sabi Holdings to date is approximately 10 billion won. This means that Switchwon is now in a position to exert the greatest influence over the management of Wabi-Sabi Holdings.
Switchwon is a currency exchange service provider established in 2021. Last year, its cumulative transaction volume exceeded 2 trillion won, and it is considered a notable startup, having signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Shinhan Securities. Seo Jung-ah, CEO of Switchwon, has served as the CEO since the establishment of Wabi-Sabi Holdings and continues to hold the position concurrently. This interpretation suggests that Switchwon has been leading Wabi-Sabi Holdings even when Korea Heat was the largest shareholder.
However, given Wabi-Sabi Holdings' current total equity of 24 billion won, it is expected that the acquisition of Bucket Studio will not be easy. Wabi-Sabi Holdings announced that it would acquire a 37% stake in Bucket Studio for approximately 240 billion won. Therefore, it appears that they will need to find additional investors or borrow a large sum of money.
Bizhankook contacted Switchwon via phone and email to hear their position on the matter, but did not receive a response.