Pantech, SKY to merge by the end of the year

Pantech Co., an affiliate of the Pantech Group, said yesterday it has finalized steps to merge with SKY Teletech Co., another of the group’s affiliates. The two sides approved the deal at their respective board meetings yesterday, and the transaction will be completed as early as November following a shareholders’ meeting in October. “With the completion of this merger, we will have moved closer to becoming one of the world’s top five handset manufacturers,” said Lee Sung-kyu, Pantech’s chief executive. “Pantech has the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) technology, while SKY Teletech has a strong brand in the local Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) market,” he added. “We can expect significant synergies through the combination of the two organizations.” Pantech & Curitel Communications Inc., a Pantech affiliate that acquired 60 percent of SKY Teletech’s shares in May, will be the largest shareholder in the integrated Pantech, while SK Telecom Co., Korea’s largest cell phone service provider, will be the second-largest. by Yoo Jee-ho