DaouKiwoom-CJ consortium picked as preferred bidder for debt-laden JoongAng Ilbo

Published Oct 20, 2026 7:53 am KST

Joongang Ilbo headquarters in Seoul / Korea Times photo by Yun Gi-hun

Creditors of JoongAng Ilbo Co. picked DaouKiwoom-CJ consortium as the preferred bidder for one of the major South Korean newspaper publishers as they closed bidding for the debt-laden company earlier in the day, industry sources said Monday.

According to the sources, the DaouKiwoom-CJ consortium beat Orion and four others in a race to take over JoongAng Ilbo, a deal estimated at between 400 billion won ($300 million) and 500 billion won.

In July this year, JoongAng Ilbo entered the debt workout program, led by main creditor Hana Bank and other lenders, amid liquidity problems at its parent, JoongAng Group.

Creditors' debt collection has been suspended for three months, allowing the company to avoid court-led rehabilitation proceedings.

JoongAng Holdings owns a 64.7 percent stake in JoongAng Ilbo and is controlled by the founding family of JoongAng Group.

发布于2026年10月20日 上午7:53（韩国标准时间）

《中央日报》首尔总部 / 韩国时报摄影：尹基勋

据业内人士周一透露，韩国主要报业出版商之一《中央日报》的债权人当天早些时候结束了对这家负债累累的公司（中央日报）的竞标，并选择了 DaouKiwoom-CJ 财团作为首选竞标者。

据消息人士透露，DaouKiwoom-CJ财团在收购《中央日报》的竞标中击败了Orion和其他四家公司，该交易金额估计在4000亿韩元（3亿美元）至5000亿韩元之间。

今年7月，由于母公司中央集团出现流动性问题，《中央日报》进入了由主要债权人韩亚银行和其他贷款机构牵头的债务重组计划。

债权人的债务催收已被暂停三个月，使该公司得以避免法院主导的重组程序。

中央控股持有《中央日报》64.7%的股份，由中央集团的创始家族控制。