Namyang Dairy cancels Hahn & Co. sale deal as messy legal battle looms in the aftermath

Namyang Dairy and Hahn & Co. are expected to engage in a legal battle after their M&A deal has been scrapped. The Korean dairy company’s chairman Hong Won Sik was said to have formally canceled the acquisition agreement and the buyer was already informed.

Namyang Dairy’s move is the latest development in its scandal-ridden corporate drama and this is most likely to lead to a string of lawsuits. Hong initially said that the deal with Hahn & Co. was still good and proceeding after it was reported last month that he may have changed his mind and regretted his decision to sell the company.

This was the observation after he postponed the board meeting that would have completed the buyout and added some of the private equity investment firm’s executives to Namyang’s board as members. Now it turned out that the suspicions were true after Namyang Dairy backed out of the deal.

According to Korea Joongang Daily, Hong Won Sik said he released the cancellation notice after Hahn & Co. allegedly failed to maintain their agreement to confidentiality. He said the PEF firm agreed to buy Namyang Dairy’s shares but disclosed confidential details of their transaction for its own gain. Hong added that it was an unfair deal anyway since it is only the buyer that can benefit from it.

The acquisition was originally set to close on Aug. 31 but as mentioned earlier, the meeting was canceled. Hong further stated that he will be looking for a new buyer.

“I tried to negotiate with the buyer after delaying the shareholder meeting,” Hong said. “But the acquirer did not show a sincere attitude toward discussion, and instead criticized me through the press and threatened me, saying I would have to pay a huge amount of compensation for damages if I don’t complete the deal.”

The Korea Herald further reported that Namyang Dairy’s chairman said that the company’s stakeholders are considering holding Hahn & Co. legally accountable for the failure of their deal worth ₩320.1 billion or $276.5 million.

Then again, Hahn & Co. responded with a rebuttal after Hong confirmed the cancellation. It said that it did not violate any agreement of confidentiality like what Hong was accusing them of. The firm further argued that the chairman’s move to cancel and find a new buyer is valid because the Seoul Central District Court granted its injunction request that prohibits Hong and the shareholders from selling their shares to another buyer or third-party investors.

Meanwhile, Hahn & Co. already sued Namyang Dairy last month for the delay of a board meeting in July. More lawsuits are expected to follow as both camps will surely fight for what they believe in.