KG Group Buys K Car and K Car Capital from Hahn & Co for $517.2m
KG takes 72.19% of used-car platform K Car plus 100% of K Car Capital, linking car making, car sales and IT across the group.
- Deal value
- $517m
- Stake
- 72.19%
- Implied 100%
- $526m
- Revenue
- $1.7bn
- Op. income
- $52m
- Multiples
- EQV/EBIT 10.0xPSR 0.3x
구주
~KRW 15,607/sh (KRW 550.09bn / 35,245,670 sh) x 48,820,848 voting shares outstanding
2025 별도 · DART-verified
2025 별도 · DART-verified
On implied equity value
DART 20260318000506
- Target
- K Car · Used-car retail platform
- Buyer
- KG Steel (KG Group) · SI
- Seller
- Hahn & Co (Hahn & Co Auto Service Holdings)
- Structure
- Secondary
- Announced
- Apr 1, 2026
- Closed
- Aug 31, 2026
- Stage
- Closed
Target
K Car is a used-car retail platform built on a '100% company-operated certified used car' model, combining online channels such as its home-delivery service with nationwide stores and in-house financing through K Car Capital. It became the first used-car company listed on KOSPI in 2021 and posted 2025 revenue of KRW 2.4388 trillion, operating profit of KRW 76 billion, EBITDA of KRW 124.8 billion and a 12.7% effective market share.
Deal rationale
KG Group said it would combine KG Mobility's manufacturing and global sales network with K Car's online/offline retail platform for an integrated mobility service across purchase, distribution and service; Chairman Kwak Jae-sun said KGM's certified used-car business 'has limits with KGM vehicles alone' and that K Car's platform could be used overseas. K Car goes to KG Steel and K Car Capital to KG Inicis in a two-track structure. Hahn & Co bought SK Encar's direct-sales unit for about KRW 200 billion in 2018, launched the K Car brand, sold about KRW 300 billion of shares in the 2021 IPO, and exited after about eight years; The Bell put cumulative proceeds at no less than KRW 1.15 trillion.
| Revenue | $1.7bn |
| Operating income | $52m |
| EBITDA | — |
| Net income | $35m |
2025 별도 · DART-verified · 20260318000506
Reported multiples
- PBR 1.2x 케이카캐피탈 지분 100% 가치(약 2000억원)를 순자산의 1.2배로 산정 source ↗
Lead
KG Steel, part of KG Group, signed a share purchase agreement with Hahn & Co on 1 April 2026 to buy 72.19% of used-car platform K Car and 100% of K Car Capital. The price was $379.3m for K Car and about $137.9m for K Car Capital, $517.2m in total, and the deal closed on 30 June. K Car has since been renamed KG Mobility Platform.
USD figures are converted at KRW 1,450 = USD 1.
Why this matters
A used-car platform built by a domestic private equity firm has passed to a strategic buyer. K Car’s reported enterprise value of about $827.6m is roughly 16x its 2025 operating income of $52.4m.
Strategic context
KG Group now links car making (KG Mobility), car sales (K Car) and IT (KG ICT). Hahn & Co bought SK Encar’s direct-sales arm for about $137.9m in 2018, built it into K Car and listed it in 2021. Its return was reported at about 4x (thebell) to more than 5x (Edaily).
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| 2025 revenue | $1.7bn |
| 2025 operating income | $52.4m |
| 2025 net income | $35.1m |
Financials from the DART 2025 annual report (separate basis).
What’s next
K Car remains listed. How it works with KG Group’s other mobility companies is the next thing to watch.