April 20, 2024

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US investor BlackRock said on March 10 it has increased its stake in South Korea‘s largest banking group KB Financial Group to 6.02 percent, from 5.01 percent in May 2014.

According to the disclosure, BlackRock Fund Advisors and 14 specially related entities had net bought a combined 314.8 billion won ($275.4 million) worth of shares in KB Financial over the past seven years. As a result, BlackRock was holding some 25 million shares out of KB Financial’s total 415.8 million outstanding shares.

BlackRock reaffirmed that it does not intend to influence KB Financial’s management through its investment.

BlackRock first emerged as a blockholder of KB Financial after its acquisition of Barclays Global Investors in 2009. It unloaded KB Financial‘s securities in 2010 and resurfaced as a blockholder in 2014.

Along with BlackRock, the National Pension Service is a major shareholder of KB Financial with some 10 percent of voting rights.

By Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)