Kim Seong-ho, the CEO of Renumetical, who operates as a major player in the domestic stock market, acquired more than 5% of the equity in Genebiotech, a manufacturer of animal feed and pharmaceuticals. He liquidated all of his shares in U.I.D, a display manufacturer in which he had invested for over a year, and invested the funds in Genebiotech.
Although he did not disclose his purpose for holding the shares in the disclosure, sources indicate that he bought the equity with participation in management in mind. There are analyses suggesting that this decision also considers the potential for Renumetical's reverse listing.
On the 13th of this month, Kim and Renumetical announced that they purchased 448,785 shares of Genebiotech worth approximately 1.54 billion won on the market. Kim secured 5.21% of Genebiotech's equity, becoming the second-largest shareholder after Lee Chan-ho, the representative of Genebiotech (28.09%).
Kim is a 'big player' investor who has generated revenue by focusing on stocks with a low price-to-book ratio (PBR). In the fourth quarter of 2020, he acquired shares of Dongwon Metal, a listed company in the securities market, worth 1.8 billion won, securing 5.63% of its equity, and he completely sold off all his shares the following February. He achieved a profit of about 1 billion won by selling shares that were trading at 1,095 won each, up from 690 to 700 won each during the time of purchase.
Since early last year, he started investing in U.I.D, a KOSDAQ-listed company, and became the second-largest shareholder, increasing his holding to 14.15% by March this year. His holding purpose was 'influence over management.' It is estimated that he invested about 3 billion won based on the average purchase price.
When U.I.D's stock price surged after being linked to former People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon, who declared his candidacy for the presidential election last month, Kim liquidated all his holdings that month, netting a profit of about 700 million won.
Kim worked as a salesperson at the Korean branch of Geistlich, a Swiss regenerative dental medicine company, before founding Renumetical, a dental medical device company, in 2009. Renumetical focuses on producing and distributing bone graft materials and is currently preparing for a KOSDAQ listing in the first half of 2027.
Analyses suggest that the background to Kim's acquisition of equity in Genebiotech through Renumetical, which he had previously invested in personally, lies in its listing strategy. Considering the recent slump in the Initial Public Offering (IPO) market, the possibility of a reverse listing through a merger with an existing listed company cannot be ruled out. Currently, Renumetical is seeking to raise 10 billion won in Series A funding.
A representative from Renumetical said, "In the case of Genebiotech, we are currently acquiring equity for simple investment purposes and are in continuous communication (with management). In the future, if in-depth discussions with Genebiotech proceed, we plan to continue investing in equity and change the purpose of our holdings to participation in management."
Renumetical's performance has been steadily growing. Last year, it recorded revenue of 17.3 billion won and an operating profit of 1.4 billion won, which represents a year-on-year increase of 3.17% and 19.65%, respectively. This year, they aim to achieve revenue of 35.1 billion won and an operating profit of 4.9 billion won. In the future, the company plans to diversify its sales channels for medical devices beyond dentistry, entering orthopedics and plastic surgery, and aims for external growth in the pharmaceutical sector.