[Photo] KCGI asks Delta to clarify its reasons for purchasing Hanjin-KAL shares

On July 1, activist fund Korea Corporate Governance Improvement (KCGI) sent a message to Delta Airlines asking it to reveal it intentions behind its purchase of Hanjin-KAL shares. Hanjin-KAL is a holding company under the conglomerate Hanjin Group and a major shareholder of Korean Air. Delta announced on June 20 its plan to purchase 4.3% of Hanjin-KAL shares. The letter asked if Delta’s was intent on protecting the Cho family’s management rights of the company, adding that such an objective would be in violation of South Korean financial law. Delta and Hanjin-KAL formed a joint venture last year on a network of trans-Pacific routes, meaning the US carrier potentially an incentive for helping the Cho family maintain control.