Hanwha Machinery & Services Holdings — known as Hanwha M&S — the newly established holding company for Hanwha Group's tech and lifestyle businesses, officially launched Monday.
The company formally declared its establishment at a launch ceremony Monday morning at The Plaza hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. Its board of directors, comprising three inside directors including CEO Kim Hyung-jo and four independent directors including Jo Min-ho, a professor at Hanyang University, held its first official meeting the same day, approving key agenda items including the appointment of executives, the formation of board committees and the adoption of internal regulations.
Hanwha M&S is organized into two broad divisions: Tech and Life Solutions. The Tech division includes Hanwha Vision, Hanwha Semitech, Hanwha Momentum and Hanwha Robotics, while the Life division comprises Hanwha Galleria, Hanwha Hotel and Amorehome. Including subsidiaries down to the third tier and overseas entities, the group spans 57 companies in total. As of the end of last year, the holding company posted consolidated revenue of about 6 trillion won ($4.19 billion), with total assets of 11.3 trillion won.
Kim Hyung-jo was named inaugural chief executive. Born in 1968, Kim joined Hanwha Group in 1994 and has spent more than 30 years building hands-on experience across business strategy and operations. He served as head of Hanwha Hotel for four years beginning in 2021.
The holding company was established through a spin-off to deepen business-specific expertise within Hanwha Group, generate synergies and ultimately strengthen the competitiveness of each affiliate. The tech and lifestyle divisions plan to move quickly under Hanwha M&S's leadership to implement management strategies tailored to their respective business characteristics and market conditions, with the goal of enhancing corporate and shareholder value. The company also plans to maximize synergies through a range of collaborations within and across the two divisions.
"Resolving the conglomerate discount will accelerate investment and business expansion in the tech and lifestyle divisions," a Hanwha M&S official said. "Before long, both divisions could become another set of core affiliates within the group."
Attention is also focused on the role of Kim Dong-sun, chief future strategy officer and the third son of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn. Kim attended Monday's ceremony and reaffirmed his commitment to the wide-ranging changes and innovation the holding company will drive going forward.
Having long championed the opening of new markets, Kim plans to move to the holding company to map out a vision for each affiliate and focus on identifying future growth engines. He was promoted to president on Saturday in recognition of achievements including the successful entry into the semiconductor equipment market through large-scale orders for TC bonders used in HBM production, and the opening of new emerging markets in the Middle East and India.
"We will build a new management framework that maximizes expertise and transform ourselves into a strong and efficient organization," CEO Kim Hyung-jo said. "We will strive to ensure that our growth contributes to the advancement of the nation and society."
Hanwha Co. held an extraordinary shareholders' meeting on July 15 and approved a spin-off plan. The newly established Hanwha M&S is scheduled to list on the KOSPI on Aug. 25.
spa@heraldcorp.com
