SoftBank-backed Yanolja raises stake in Modetour as No. 2 shareholder

South Korea’s top travel and accommodation booking platform operator Yanolja Co. has increased its stake in travel agency Modetour Network Inc., stoking speculation of potential governance tensions at one of the country’s oldest tour operators.

According to a recent regulatory filing, Yanolja purchased 56,000 shares of Modetour through open-market transactions between March 18 and 21.

The purchase has brought its Modetour stake holding to 5.26%, up from 4.5% earlier, making it the company’s second-largest shareholder.

Yanolja has steadily increased its stake in Modetour since the second half of 2023.

FOUNDING FAMILY’S WEAK GRIP ON MODETOUR

The stock accumulation comes as Modetour’s founding family faces questions over its grip on the company.

Founder and Chairman Woo Chong-woong is Modetour's single largest shareholder, holding a 10.92% stake, while his eldest son, Woo Jun-yeol, who recently became its chief executive, owns 0.2%.

The chairman’s younger son, Woo Jun-sang, who heads Modetour’s cruise unit, Cruise International, holds a 0.16% stake.

Combined with stakes held by friendly key executives, the Woo family’s holdings barely exceed 12%, sources said.

With Yanolja now holding over 5% of Modetour, the gap between the travel platform operator and Modetour’s founding family has narrowed to just over 5 percentage points, fueling speculation that Yanolja could seek greater influence at the company.

In its filing to the financial regulator, Yanolja stated that its stake purchase is for “investment purposes.”

Industry officials said, however, that the stake-building may well be a prelude to more assertive steps.

“With fragmented ownership and limited insider control, Modetour is vulnerable,” said an industry executive.

LEADERSHIP TRANSITION

The timing is also notable.

Modetour is in the midst of a delicate leadership transition. In a move widely seen as a bid to consolidate the founding family’s control, Woo Chong-woong promoted his son Jun-yeol to CEO earlier this month. His term officially begins on April 1.

Founded in 1989, Modetour was once a dominant player in Korea’s outbound travel business but has faced headwinds in recent years amid digital disruption and pandemic-era shocks.

Yanolja, backed by global investors, including SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund, has grown rapidly by digitizing travel bookings and expanding overseas.

YANOLJA’S AGGRESSIVE EXPANSION

Founded in 2005, Yanolja has actively pursued mergers and acquisitions to grow beyond its core travel platform business.

It acquired Daily Hotel and eZee Technosys in 2019 and Dable in 2021.

In 2022, Yanolja spent about 300 billion won ($204 million) to acquire Interpark Inc., one of Korea’s first-generation e-commerce platforms, and Triple, a hyper-personalized travel platform. Later, it sold off Interpark’s shopping and book businesses and changed the travel platform’s name to Interpark Triple.

In 2023, it acquired Go Global Travel (GGT), an Israel-based company for global B2B travel solutions, through its subsidiary Yanolja Cloud.

Write to Da-Eun Choi at max@hankyung.com

In-Soo Nam edited this article.