Netmarble showed confidence to take over Nexon and its satisfaction with the synergy effect it will bring about.
"We are highly evaluating Nexon's intellectual property and development capabilities," said CEO Kwon Young-sik of Netmarble during a conference call that was held after its announcement of its performance on February 13. "If we combine these capabilities with Netmarble's mobile game business capabilities and global publishing capabilities, we will create positive synergy."
News of Netmarble's acquisition of Nexon came to light on February 8.
According to industries, Netmarble has formed a consortium with MBK Partners and Tencent and is going on a full-scale move to take over Nexon.
Some interpret that Netmarble is trying to take over Nexon in an attempt to upgrade its corporate value by overcoming its poor performance due to delayed game creation.
Netmarble's sales announced on the same day were 2.21 trillion won, operating profit was 241.7 billion won, and net profit was 21.49 billion won. Compared to first half of last year, sales, operating profit, and net profit decreased by 16.6%, 52.6%, and 40.4%, respectively.
Sales have declined as the release of major mobile games was delayed and the "Blade and Soul Revolution" that was launched at the end of last year did not meet expectations.
The most interesting part of the conference call was whether Netmarble had enough money to buy Nexon.
"We believe that it will be possible to attract cash and financial investors and secure acquisition funds with just a few loans," said Seo Jang-won, vice president of Netmarble's management strategy.
However, regarding the exact amount of the acquisition, members of the consortium, and the share price, he said, "We cannot confirm it at this time."
Meanwhile, Netmarble is set to start its new production in the first quarter of this year.
