CAPE Investment & Securities Co. has moved a step closer to becoming a new owner of SK Securities Co., kick-starting its growth as a mid-sized stock brokerage house in South Korea.

On Tuesday, SK Group, the owner of SK Securities, announced that CAPE Consortium comprising CAPE Investment & Securities and CAPE Investment was chosen as a preferred bidder for the acquisition of its brokerage house. The successful outcome comes after CAPE’s two failed attempts to acquire other small stock brokers.

The transaction is said to be valued at some 60 billion won ($53.6 million) for a 10.04 percent stake in SK Securities. Both parties are expected to hasten negotiations and sign a stock purchase agreement given the deal deadline of August 2. SK Group has to dispose its holding in SK Securities by this time to comply with the country’s fair trade law that bans a holding company from owning interest in a financial unit.

In the final bid, the consortium was competing with Korean home-grown private equity fund Q Capital Partners Co., which was ahead in terms of offered prices. But SK eventually chose CAPE in consideration of deal completeness, including time to contract closing and regulatory qualification review of a new owner.

CAPE Investment & Securities is the unit of ship component maker CAPE, which jumped into stock brokerage business in late 2015 when CAPE Investment acquired then LIG Investment & Securities.

The combination of CAPE Investment & Securities and SK Securities would create 620 billion won in total equity capital, upping their combined business by 20 notches in ranking to 18th.

CAPE Consortium aims to issue new shares to increase its stake in SK Securities to up to 30 percent.

By Chun Kyung-woon and Song Gwang-sup

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