Shinsegae affiliates to acquire SSG.com stake from financial investor

SEOUL, June 11 (Yonhap) -- Shinsegae Inc. and E-Mart Inc., key affiliates of retail conglomerate Shinsegae Group, said Thursday they will acquire the entire stake in the group's e-commerce affiliate SSG.com held by a financial investor in a deal valued at about 1.27 trillion won (US$785 million).

In separate regulatory filings, the two companies said they will jointly purchase all shares in SSG.com held by Olympus First, with E-Mart acquiring its portion for 827.5 billion won and Shinsegae for 443.6 billion won.

Upon completion of the transaction on Aug. 26, E-Mart and Shinsegae will hold 65.1 percent and 34.9 percent stakes in SSG.com, respectively.

Shinsegae Group's e-commerce platform, SSG.com, is seen in this undated file photo. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

E-Mart and Shinsegae said the acquisition is intended to "improve the efficiency of e-commerce operations and enhance long-term corporate value."

In November 2024, the two companies sold a combined 30 percent stake in SSG.com to Olympus First, a financial investor backed by six banks and four securities firms, in a deal worth 1.15 trillion won.

The agreement included a call option allowing E-Mart and Shinsegae to repurchase the entire stake 18 months after the contract was signed.

The move comes as Shinsegae Group seeks to strengthen management oversight across its key businesses following a controversy involving Starbucks Korea, which is operated by E-Mart.

Last month, Starbucks Korea faced strong public criticism over its "Tank Day" promotion, which coincided with the anniversary of the May 18 Gwangju pro-democracy uprising and drew backlash for evoking memories of the military's violent crackdown on the democracy movement in the 1980s.

On Monday, the group announced that Chairman Chung Yong-jin would take the helm of E-Mart and serve as co-chief executive officer (CEO) of Shinsegae Property, its property development affiliate.