[Edaily Marketin Hur Jieun Reporter] The MBK Partners–Youngpoong consortium, currently embroiled in a management control dispute with KoreaZinc(010130), announced on the 25th that it had closed the submission period for public nominations of outside director candidates to serve as separately elected audit committee members at the upcoming extraordinary general meeting of KoreaZinc on the 24th. The public nomination period ran for 20 days, beginning on June 5.

As a result of the submission period, more than 10 candidates from various fields—including corporate management, accounting and finance, legal and compliance, ESG, industry and technology, and risk management—were nominated. A wide range of stakeholders participated in the nomination process, including KoreaZinc shareholders, corporate governance-related organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and professional associations.

MBK and Youngpoong stated, “We would like to express our gratitude to the shareholders, relevant organizations, and experts who joined forces to restore the independence and oversight functions of KoreaZinc’s Audit Committee,” adding, “This open nomination process was established to identify audit committee candidate nominees who are independent of the interests of specific shareholders or the current management.”

Previously, KoreaZinc had conducted its candidate nomination process by granting nomination eligibility only to shareholders holding a certain minimum stake. The eligibility criteria set by KoreaZinc required candidates to meet one of two conditions: △ holding at least 0.1% of the total issued shares for six months or longer, or △ holding at least 1% of the total issued shares. Critics argued that, based on KoreaZinc’s current market capitalization, securing a 0.1% stake would require holding shares worth hundreds of billions of won, effectively excluding small retail investors and small-to-medium-sized asset management firms.

In response, MBK and Youngpoong explained, “We operated a broader and more open nomination process to ensure the independence of audit committee candidates,” adding, “We focused on identifying candidates capable of performing their duties independently in the best interests of the company and all shareholders.”

Moving forward, MBK and Youngpoong plan to select the final candidates following a review by an independent candidate screening committee composed of three external experts. The identities of the final candidates are expected to be revealed next week.