The Siena Group to Acquire Golfzon County, Valued at 1.8 Trillion Won

Signed SPA with MBK Partners
Golfzon Holdings: "Opposes Sale"

The Siena Group, a resort and golf course operator, is acquiring Golfzon County, South Korea's largest golf course operator, which owns more than 20 golf courses. Meanwhile, Golfzon Holdings, the second-largest shareholder, has voiced opposition to the sale and indicated it may take legal action.

According to investment banking (IB) industry sources on October 28, a consortium of The Siena Group and CL Asset Management signed a stock purchase agreement (SPA) with MBK Partners on October 27 to acquire management control of Golfzon County. Golfzon County's enterprise value, including debt, was estimated at approximately 1.8 trillion won. Morgan Stanley and Samjong KPMG are advising on the sale.

Golfzon County's largest shareholder is MBK Partners, a private equity fund (PEF) manager that holds a 68.4% stake. The remaining shares are held by Golfzon Holdings, the holding company of the Golfzon Group. Under a shareholder agreement signed when MBK invested in Golfzon County in 2018, MBK reportedly has a drag-along right allowing it to include Golfzon Holdings' stake in a sale, while Golfzon Holdings has a tag-along right allowing it to sell its shares alongside MBK. MBK has exercised its drag-along right, and the Siena consortium plans to acquire 100% of the shares.

During MBK's investment period, Golfzon County grew in scale as well as profitability. Its revenue rose nearly sixfold, from 49.1 billion won in 2017 to 285.2 billion won in 2025. Operating profit increased over the same period from 12.1 billion won to 81.1 billion won. The number of golf courses it operated also grew from five at the time of the investment to 22.

Meanwhile, Golfzon Holdings, the second-largest shareholder, indicated it may take legal action, saying MBK Partners had unilaterally pursued the sale.

Golfzon Holdings said, "MBK Partners is pursuing the sale of its stake in Golfzon County while disregarding Golfzon Holdings' repeated calls for an initial public offering (IPO) and its concerns about unfair terms in the golf course lease agreements."

It added, "We accepted MBK Partners' investment on the understanding that it would successfully complete Golfzon County's IPO and safeguard Golfzon Holdings' management rights during the subsequent process of recouping its investment. We also signed agreements to lease four golf courses owned by Golfzon Holdings to Golfzon County to facilitate the IPO."

It continued, "These agreements do not require a separate rental deposit, and the rent is also considerably below market levels. We will also correct these unfair lease terms."

Golfzon Holdings said, "We have endured these conditions to support Golfzon County's growth. We repeatedly asked MBK to rectify the unfair terms of the golf course lease agreements, but MBK Partners has continued with sale negotiations without providing specific answers or proposing solutions."

It stressed, "We are reviewing all available means, including legal action, to protect our legitimate rights and management control and to rectify the unfair contract terms, and we will actively take the necessary steps."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.