IMM PE to close acquisition of South Korea's top diamond tool maker next week

IMM Private Equity, a South Korean private equity fund manager, is set to complete its acquisition of Ewha Diamond Industrial, the country's leading diamond tool manufacturer.

According to investment banking industry sources, IMM PE will pay the remaining balance for the acquisition on Monday and close the deal. The transaction covers approximately 65 percent of Ewha Diamond Industrial's controlling stake held by the founding family, with the deal valued at around 400 billion won ($282 million). The closing comes roughly three months after the two sides signed a share purchase agreement in May.

Founded in 1975, Ewha Diamond Industrial became the first domestic company to mass-produce diamond tools and has since built a position as South Korea's No. 1 and the world's third-largest player in the sector. The company supplies precision machining tools essential across manufacturing industries — including semiconductors, displays, construction, automotive and aerospace — and has not posted a single annual operating loss in its roughly 50-year history, earning a reputation as a lean, high-quality manufacturer.

Financial Supervisory Service filings on DART show a clear improvement in the company's profitability. Ewha Diamond Industrial posted operating profit of 30.2 billion won last year, surpassing the five-year average annual operating profit of 21.8 billion won for 2020–2024 by 38.5 percent.

A key factor behind IMM PE's decision to acquire the company is its core technology in semiconductor back-end processing. Ewha Diamond Industrial holds world-class expertise in back-grinding wheels, which shave wafers down to precise thicknesses. The company is also rapidly expanding its footprint in CMP pad conditioners used in wafer planarization, advancing joint development and quality certification processes with major global customers.

Following the acquisition, IMM PE plans to significantly increase research and development investment to grow the company's global market share. Leveraging Ewha Diamond Industrial's 10 global production bases and seven overseas sales subsidiaries, IMM PE intends to actively support the company's expansion into high-value advanced industries such as defense, aerospace and healthcare.

The deal further strengthens IMM PE's strategy of building a semiconductor and advanced materials portfolio. The firm has been working to transfer AirFirst, its flagship industrial gas supplier, to a continuation fund to secure a long-term growth platform. With the addition of Ewha Diamond Industrial, IMM PE has extended its reach into precision machining materials and tools for back-end semiconductor processes.

The acquisition also follows IMM PE's recent selection as the preferred bidder for Kolon Industries' semiconductor and display materials division, bringing the firm closer to assembling a comprehensive materials, components and equipment value chain spanning the full semiconductor manufacturing process.

Samjong KPMG served as sell-side adviser on the transaction, with international law firm Paul Hastings providing legal counsel to the sellers. IMM PE led the deal in-house without a separate buy-side financial adviser, with Kim & Chang and Samil PwC providing legal and accounting advisory services, respectively, to IMM PE.