Align Partners Urges Governance and Capital Allocation Improvements at Coway Co., Ltd.
21.1.2025 13:00:00 CET | Business Wire | Press release
Despite holding only 25%, Netmarble’s outsized influence over Coway casts serious doubt on how effectively conflicts are managedAlign Partners urges capital structure optimization and stronger governance at Coway to ensure all shareholders’ interests are protected – not only that of NetmarbleAlign Partners’ Presentation is available at https://www.bside.ai/coway/feed/1206
Align Partners Capital Management Inc. ("Align Partners"), a shareholder of Coway Co., Ltd. (KRX: 021240) ("Coway" or the “Company”) owning 2.8%, has published a presentation calling for improvements in Coway’s governance and capital allocation.
Netmarble Corp. (“Netmarble”), with a 25.1% stake, wields disproportionate control over Coway. This influence is entrenched through its founder serving as Executive Chair, a former Netmarble executive as CEO, and a director nomination process overseen by Netmarble, raising serious governance concerns.
Coway’s governance structure, with obvious conflicts of interest, has failed to protect minority shareholders’ interests. This was starkly demonstrated when Coway’s Netmarble-influenced leadership slashed the shareholder return policy from 90% to 20%. Since then, accumulated earnings have not been effectively utilized, weighing down ROE and valuations. Coway’s rushed January 6th announcement to raise the shareholder return ratio to 40% risks lowering its already low leverage multiple (1.0x vs. industry 2.2x), further reducing ROE and valuations.
The market’s concerns are evident in Coway’s valuation decline, with its PBR falling from 6.0x on December 30th, 2019, when Netmarble became its largest shareholder, to 1.5x today. This sharp drop reflects eroded investor confidence and the urgent need for Coway to address governance shortcomings, optimize its capital structure, and limit Netmarble’s influence. Align Partners has specifically urged Coway to:
- Strengthen its governance by making its Board truly independent to ensure fair representation of minority shareholders’ interests against that of only Netmarble’s.
- Adopt a target capital structure policy, focused on maintaining an appropriate Net Debt to EBITDA multiple, which would enable an improved shareholder return policy.
We have asked Coway to respond to the requests and key questions asked by February 3, 2025. For details, visit www.bside.ai/coway, and contact us at coway_valueup@alignpartnerscap.com.
About
Align Partners is an investment company with a focus on Korea. Led by CEO Changhwan Lee, Align Partners leverages expertise in private equity and investment banking to drive sustainable growth, engaging with portfolio companies to address the "Korea discount."
https://www.alignpartnerscap.com/en/.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250121738153/en/
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Andersen Consulting tilføjer Multiplica3.4.2026 13:30:00 CEST | Pressemeddelelse
Andersen Consulting indgår en samarbejdsaftale med Multiplica, et digitalt konsulentfirma, der hjælper organisationer med at designe, bygge og skalere effektfulde digitale oplevelser. Multiplica, der er stiftet i Spanien og desuden har aktiviteter i Latinamerika og USA, fokuserer på brugerundersøgelser og behovsafdækning, research af kundeoplevelser, digital strategi, datamodellering og -analyse, rapportautomatisering og datavisualisering, konverteringsoptimering, produktdesign og design af brugeroplevelser. Virksomheden hjælper organisationer med at fremskynde den digitale transformation ved at opbygge digitale kompetencer, teams og aktiver, der fremmer ekspertise på tværs af digitale produkter, rådgivning og talentudvikling. Multiplica gør det muligt for kunder at prognosticere nye tendenser inden for digitale oplevelser og transformere deres forretninger gennem styrkede digitale kanaler og kundeengagement. "Samarbejdet med Andersen Consulting udgør en spændende mulighed for at udvid
Enry’s Island Unveils “Enry’s Island Adventures”: Venture Capital Becomes a Videogame and Launches the “Strap” Movement on Kickstarter3.4.2026 09:47:00 CEST | Press release
Gaming, finance, and lifestyle merge to democratize the startup ecosystem: Enry’s Island opens 2026 applications for game development studios seeking more than just capital. Enry’s Island SpA (WBAG: EIOS), the world’s first publicly traded Venture Builder, today announced the upcoming Kickstarter launch of Enry’s Island Adventures (EIA), developed by its New York-based portfolio company, Enry’s Island Adventures LLC. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260402548535/en/ The game is designed to make venture capital accessible to new generations, transforming startup creation into an engaging and social gaming experience. After three years of R&D, EIA introduces a "bleisure" model (business + leisure): players learn to launch and manage startups through gameplay that includes real business KPIs, a customizable and evolving personal island, synchronous and asynchronous multiplayer modes, social events, and community-d
SES Announces Results of the Annual General Meeting2.4.2026 16:49:00 CEST | Press release
SES (the “Company”) held the Annual General Meeting (“AGM”) of Shareholders today in Betzdorf, Luxembourg. Following the recommendations made by the Board of Directors of SES, the shareholders have voted in favor of all resolutions, including the Company’s 2025 annual accounts and the proposed annual dividend of EUR 0.50 per A-share (EUR 0.20 per B-share). The total dividend amount comprises the interim dividend of EUR 0.25 per A-share (EUR 0.10 per B-share), which has already been paid to shareholders on October 16, 2025. The final dividend of EUR 0.25 per A-share (EUR 0.10 per B-share) will be paid to shareholders on April 16, 2026. “I would like to sincerely thank our shareholders for their active engagement, visionary support and continued confidence in SES’ strategy,” said Adel Al-Saleh, CEO of SES. “The outcomes of today’s AGM underscore our shared commitment to a bold multi-orbit approach, with Medium Earth Orbit as the strategic backbone of a dynamically evolving global interco
Andersen Consulting styrker sine kompetencer med tilføjelsen af Lukkap2.4.2026 16:31:00 CEST | Pressemeddelelse
Andersen Consulting tilføjer samarbejdspartneren Lukkap, et konsulenthus med fokus på oplevelsesdrevne kompetencer, der er tilpasset kundernes skiftende behov inden for transformation af medarbejdere, kunder og det digitale område. Lukkap, der blev stiftet i 2009 og har hovedsæde i Spanien, leverer integrerede løsninger, der hjælper organisationer med at transformere, hvordan de betjener kunder, engagerer medarbejdere og frigør værdi gennem adfærdsindsigt og dataanalyse. Virksomhedens tværfaglige tilgang spænder over nytænkning af kunderejsen, effektive programmer for medarbejderoplevelser, talent- og ledelsesudvikling, prædiktiv analyse samt omfattende outplacement- og transitionsydelser. Lukkap arbejder på tværs af sektorer — herunder sundhedsvæsen, medicinalindustri, forbrugsgoder, detailhandel, finans og bankvæsen — for at opbygge menneskecentrerede strategier, der skaber målbare forretningsresultater. "Ved at kombinere vores erfaringsdrevne metode med Andersen Consultings globale
Forrester: Three Years Into GenAI, Enterprises Are Still Chasing Its True Transformative Value2.4.2026 16:00:00 CEST | Press release
Low AI fluency, uneven adoption, and marginal productivity gains are limiting enterprise-scale impact According to Forrester’s (Nasdaq: FORR) latest report, Accelerate Your AI Voyage, most enterprises are struggling to turn growing AI adoption and investment into measurable business impact. One of the key factors holding businesses back is low artificial intelligence quotient (AIQ) — Forrester’s measure of AI aptitude — with many employees lacking a clear understanding of how to use AI. Other barriers include an overemphasis on productivity-focused use cases, difficulty measuring impact, and siloed adoption within individual functions. While these challenges can leave firms frozen in doubt or indecision, the wait-and-see approach to AI adoption is no longer viable. To unlock AI’s full potential, organizations need to focus on four key areas: Define the business outcomes and success metrics for what they want AI to achieve; identify specific use cases for AI deployment aligned to those
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom