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SK Square, a global investment leader and a subsidiary of SK Telecom, has sold off some of its stake in SK Shieldus, a cybersecurity service provider. In addition to the share, the deal also includes management rights, and these were sold to EQT Partners private equity fund company being operated by Sweden's Wallenberg Group.
SK Square confirmed the acquisition deal with EQT Partners on Wednesday, Mar. 1. It said that the transaction is worth KRW2 trillion or about $1.5 billion. As per The Korea Times, despite the sale, the company will remain the second-largest shareholder at SK Shieldus with its 32% stake.
A company official said that SK Square made the decision to sell as it is aiming to turn SK Shieldus into a "global comprehensive security service firm" through joint management with EQT Partners.
In any case, the Swedish PEF firm will now own part of SK Square's stake in addition to the entire stake that was previously held by Macquarie. After the sale, the South Korean investment arm of SK Telecom will have the remaining 32% stake worth KRW1 trillion.
"SK Square will further enhance the shareholder value, based on its first full-cycle investment performance since the launch of the company," SK Square's vice president, Park Jung Ho, said in a press release. "Our joint management deal with EQT will provide an opportunity to upgrade the global competitiveness of the Korean security industry."
In a separate statement during a press conference at the 2023 Mobile World Congress that was held in Barcelona, Spain, on Feb. 27 to Mar. 2, Park further shared, "The acquisition of SK Shieldus' stake by EQT Infrastructure under EQT Partners, a Wallenberg Group investment company, was unanimously approved."
Meanwhile, SK shieldus has several bases overseas through its subsidiaries in the United States, Hungary, and China. It has been exporting security control platforms while also offering security services through its local partnerships in countries such as Japan and Vietnam.
