Hyundai Motor to launch investment affiliate in US for further growth

South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group will establish an investment company in the US state of Delaware to expand its presence in the North American market through mergers and acquisitions of promising technology firms.

Tentatively named HMG Global, the investment entity will be capitalized with funds from the group’s three major affiliates – Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Corp. and auto parts maker Hyundai Mobis Co., according to the group’s regulatory filing on Thursday.

The US investment affiliate will officially launch in August after obtaining approval from US authorities.

“HMG Global will enable us to make quick investment decisions in the US. It will also manage invested companies efficiently,” Hyundai said.

Hyundai Motor and Kia, Korea’s two largest automakers, will inject a combined $578 million in cash to the new investment affiliate in Delaware, a small Mid-Atlantic US state.

Hyundai Motor and Hyundai Mobis will also transfer their combined 50% stake in Boston Dynamics Inc. to HMG Global, making the Delaware company the largest shareholder of the robotics firm.

Following the capitalization, Hyundai Motor will own 49.5% of HMG Global while Kia and Hyundai Mobis will have 30.5% and 20% of the company, respectively.

ROBOTICS, UAM TO DEFINE HYUNDAI

In December of 2020, Hyundai Motor Group affiliates and Group Chairman Chung Euisun purchased 80% of Boston Dynamics, a US robotics startup best known for its four-legged robot dog Spot for $880 million from SoftBank Group.

Chairman Chung said at the time robotics will account for 20% of the group’s future business, with automobiles taking up half of its sales, followed by urban air mobility (UAM) at 30%.

As a result of the transfer of the 50% stake in Boston Dynamics to HMG Global, Chairman Chung will own 20% of the robotics company while Hyundai Glovis Co. will have a 10% stake. The remaining 20% is owned by SoftBank.

While overseeing the operation of Boston Dynamics, HMG Global will also seek investment candidates in the US that can complement Hyundai’s efforts to expand operations in the US.

HYUNDAI’S US PLEDGE

The planned launch of the US investment company comes as a follow-up to Hyundai’s pledge to invest $10.5 billion in the world’s second-largest automobile market.

Earlier in May, the automotive group announced a plan to invest $5.5 billion build its first dedicated electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facilities in the US state of Georgia.

During US President Joe Biden’s visit to Seoul in mid-May, Hyundai leader Chung promised an additional $5 billion investment, raising the group’s total US investment to $10.5 billion, to push for future growth businesses ranging from robotics and UAM to autonomous driving.

Hyundai said its US commitment is in line with the Biden administration’s goal of 40-50% zero-emission vehicle sales in the US by 2030.

Write to Han-Shin Park at phs@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.