Hyundai directors kept in dark on $10bn land bid

SEOUL: Hyundai Motor and 2 listed affiliates didn't request board clearance for the dimensions of their record $10 billion bid for a plot of land in Seoul, over triple its appraised worth, four board members of the businesses told Reuters.

Thursday’s winning bid for the land sent shares in Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Hyundai Mobis plunging, wiping out $8bn in stockholder worth, and sparked howls of protest from investors, rekindling worries concerning company governance at South Korea’s conglomerates, or chaebol.

While boards of the 3 corporations mentioned and approved bidding for the plot within the capital’s high-end Gangnam district to accommodate a headquarters advanced, edifice and automotive amusement park, the damage wasn't shared with administrators because it was deemed to be confidential, 3 of the administrators aforesaid.