Optimus also affected 59 listed companies and entrepreneurs

Prosecutors investigating the Optimus Fund suspicion are leaving the building with confiscated assets after a search of the headquarters of Daishin Securities, the fund’s first seller, on the 16th. News 1

Some 60 listed companies have been confirmed to have invested in the Optimus Fund. Conglomerates like Hanwha LS Bokwang Nexen Ottogi, as well as universities like Sungkyunkwan University and Konkuk University, have invested money in Optimus. Some managers also have money tied to Optimus.

A look at the ‘List of All Optimus Fund Subscribers’ obtained by the Korea Economic Daily on the 18th showed that 59 listed companies, including 12 stock exchanges and 47 KOSDAQ markets, have invested in the Optimus Fund. On the list, total fund contracts (about 3,300 cases) were recorded for three years from June 2017, when Optimus began selling funds from public institutional accounts receivable, to June this year, when it announced the suspension of the bailout. .

It was revealed for the first time that many more companies, in addition to the previously known Hanwha Group, HLB and LS Electric, put their money into Optimus. Ottogi, a publicly traded food company, invested 15 billion won in Optimus through NH Investment & Securities in February and April. BGF Retail invested 5 billion won in February and JS Corporation invested 15 billion won in April and May. Taking into account that the Optimus Fund matures between 6 and 9 months, it is estimated that a significant number of investments were thrown out due to the suspension of the rescue.

Several members of the management staff also appear on the investor list. Nexen Group Chairman Kang Byung-joong has invested 11 billion won (cumulative) in Optimus since last year. Heo Seung-jo, President of the Ilju Academic Cultural Foundation (formerly Vice President of GS Retail), LT Group President Koo Bon-sik and LS Electric President Ja-gyun Koo have also invested billions of won.

The companies explained: “The investment in the fund was made through the seller’s recommendation to transfer additional funds to a stable commercial fund receivable from a public institution.” In the financial investment industry, it is highly unusual to see dozens of publicly traded companies, such as large corporations, flock to a specific private equity fund. An official at an asset management company said, “It’s never easy to attract investors like this with just sales from salespeople and managers.”

Ottogi 15 billion, AhnLab 7 billion … Optimus is food even for famous companies
59 listed companies and owners of large corporations also lost investment

The Optimus incident is called the “final king of fund fraud.” Optimus Asset Management decided early on and misrepresented asset statements. After neutralizing the financial authorities’ tracking network, it raised 1.2 trillion won in the past three years promoting it as “providing 3% annual profit.” It was confirmed for the first time that publicly traded companies such as large companies invested at least 500 billion won in such a scam. In the financial investment industry, some say: “There will be an undercurrent behind large-scale investments in such fraudulent products.”

○ It attracted 59 listed companies in 3 years

Regarding the “ List of all Optimus Fund subscribers ” obtained by the Korea Economic Daily on the 18th, the investment of publicly traded companies in Optimus started with Telefield, an information technology (IT ) of KOSDAQ that invested 300 million won on July 25, 2017. Telefield is a company that manufactures optical transmission equipment necessary for the construction of the national backbone. Before Telefield, in June of the same year, the Korea Broadcasting Agency, a public institution, invested 30 billion won in Optimus for the first time.

Subsequently, 59 listed companies (12 stock exchanges and 47 KOSDAQ exchanges) were listed as fund investors for three years until last June, when Optimus announced that it would stop buying back. On the stock market, Ottogi (15 billion won), JS Corporation (15 billion won), BGF Retail (10 billion won), HDC (6.5 billion won), LS Electric (5 1 billion won), Hanil Cement Holdings (5 billion won), Nexen (30 won) KRW 100 million) joined Optimus. Among the listed companies on the KOSDAQ market, mainly HLB and HLB Life Science (40 billion won), A Story (13 billion won), KFA (8 billion won), AhnLab (7 1 billion won), JYP Entertainment, and NHN Korea Cyber ​​Payment (5 billion won). did.

Hanwha General Chemical (50 billion won), an unlisted company affiliated with Hanwha Group, has invested the most money in Optimus, both listed and unlisted. Hanwha General Chemical signed four underwriting agreements with Optimus through Hanwha Investment & Securities in January-March 2019.

Public institutions such as Korea Electric Power, Horse Association, and Rural Community Corporation, as well as universities and unions, have invested large amounts of money. Sungkyunkwan University brought in 4.6 billion won four times from June last year to February this year. Hannam University and Konkuk University also invested 4.4 billion won and 4 billion won respectively. The Korea Expressway Corporation syndicate invested 500 million won in Optimus in January 2019. Until now, Optimus has been promoting it to invest in accounts receivable from public institutions issued by Korea Highway Corporation. Korea Expressway Corporation explained, “We have never issued a sales receivable.”

○ ‘Beom LG’ invested mainly by entrepreneurs

Managers also stood out among individual investors. Representative Kang Byung-jung, President of Nexen Group. President Kang placed 11 billion won on all six occasions, starting from 2 billion won (Korea Investment & Securities) in July 2019 to 3 billion won (NH Investment & Securities) in April this year. The Nexen subsidiary also invested 3 billion won in Optimus.

Heo Man-jung, the eighth child of LG Group co-founder Heo Seung-jo, president of the Ilju Academic and Cultural Foundation (former vice president of GS Retail), entrusted the family with 6.6 billion won and 4 billion won to the president of LT Group, Koo Bon-sik. Koo Kwang-mo, father of LG Group president Koo In-neung, president of Heesung Group, also invested 500 million won. All of these “LG family” entrepreneurs joined Optimus through NH Investment & Securities (formerly LG Investment & Securities).

In the financial investment industry, it is unusual to see that dozens of publicly traded companies, such as large corporations and business people, have invested in a specific private equity fund. An official from a private equity firm said: “To attract corporate clients, such as listed companies that invest a large amount of money, there are cases where the manager needs to make a presentation (PT) directly.” “Unless someone outside is actively trading, it attracts investors to this extent. I can’t get paid.”

Reporter Oh Hyeong-joo [email protected]