Chairman Lim Young-rok of KB Financial Group said it’s the message of hope that will lighten up the financial group on the group’s securing the priority bidding rights in the bidding for LIG non-life insurance co.

At the group’s management consultation meeting held on July 12 at the group’s head office, Lim said if the group takes over the non-life insurer, it would help the non-banking sector keep in balance with the banking sector of the group.

He continued to note that the selection of the financial group as the priority bidder will go a long way in boosting the spirit of every one with the group, which has been rather low, truly a message of hope.

Present at the meeting included President Lee Kun-ho of Kookmin Bank, a major affiliate of the financial group and other top managers of the group’s affiliates and leading executive officers.

Lim earlier sent the emails to each leading executives of the affiliates of the group a day before the meeting to say that winning the priority bidding rights will recover the confidence in the group at the same time providing the starting point for a new challenge to move forward in the group’s operations hopefully.

The chairman said he has been looking for chances for M&As for balanced growth of the group’s banking and non-banking sectors. In March, the group successfully took over KB Capital and won the priority bidder rights for LIG non-Life insurance co. He said he would like thank every officer and staff for their passionate efforts, which brought successes in our recent moves to diversify the business portfolio by taking over new companies up for sale.

 The chairman said a sales contract to take over shares of  LIG non-insurance co. has been concluded on June 27, with all major steps concluded except the approval from the financial authorities for making LIG non-life insurance, an affiliate of  the KB Financial Group which is to be attained in September.

The financial group is to take over 19.47 percent of outstanding shares of LIG non-life insurance from eight major shareholders including Koo Bon-sang at a total price of 685 billion won.

Officials of the group said the takeover price of the shares of LIG non-life insurance include just about all the impacts that might occur when the non-life insurance company relisted as an affiliate of the financial group on the stock market, which might boost the value of the non-life insurance co. in reflection of the strong funding resources accessible to the company and potential strategic synergy that might be created with other affiliates as a member of the group, the largest financial group in Korea.

The group won the bidding priority rights despite the fact that rival bidders wrote in higher bidding prices due to various detailed matters associated with the non-life insurer becoming an affiliate of  the largest financial group in the country, financial sources said.

After a formal contract is signed in September following an approval from the financial authorities installing the non-life insurer as an affiliate of the group, an expert meeting will be held to take care of various matters such renaming the new affiliate, the electronic management system, stabilization of the new affiliate and strengthening the operational power, among others, the officials of the group said.