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Photo courtesy of Yonhap News |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] KT Corp. is moving to sell its entire stake in travel and leisure platform Yanolja as the company accelerates restructuring efforts to focus on its ICT and AI-driven core businesses.
According to industry sources on August 18, KT recently appointed a local accounting firm to advise on the stake sale. The telecom giant currently holds 1,016,990 shares in Yanolja, equivalent to about a 1% stake.
KT first invested in Yanolja in Q3 2019, acquiring 7,823 redeemable convertible preferred shares (RCPS) worth KRW 20 billion during the company’s Series D round. Following multiple stock splits and a bonus issue, KT’s stake expanded to over 1.5 million shares before being reduced to its current level after partial sales.
The divestment push comes as Yanolja’s planned Nasdaq IPO faces mounting uncertainty. The company raised KRW 2 trillion from SoftBank in 2021, fueling global listing expectations. However, a slower-than-expected recovery in the travel and hospitality sector, weakening investor sentiment for tech and platform stocks in the U.S., and higher global interest rates have all weighed heavily on its IPO prospects.
By exiting Yanolja, KT aims to free up capital tied in non-core assets and reallocate resources into AI transformation, cloud, and digital platforms. The move aligns with a broader industry trend of telecom operators divesting non-telecom holdings to fund next-generation technology investments.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
