Who Owns Kia?

Kia is a multinational automobile manufacturer based in Seoul, South Korea. The company was founded in Jun 1944 by Kim Chul Ho as Kyungsung Precision Industry. The original company manufactured steel tubing and bicycle parts.

In 1952, Kyungsung Precision Industry changed its name to Kia Industries. In 2023, the Kia EV9 electric SUV was announced as the best new car in the “What Car? Reader Awards”. EV9 was recognized before it was launched and outshined 13 competitors, including Volvo’s EX90, the Mercedes EQE, and the electric Porsche Macan. [1]

Kia is South Korea’s second-largest automobile manufacturer after Hyundai Motors. It sells passenger, commercial, and recreational vehicles, taxis, buses, and hybrids worldwide. In 2023, Kia’s global sales increased 6.3% to 3.08 million units.

Its SUV and utility lineup recorded a 16% growth and contributed 72% of sales. The company’s 2024 target is over 3.2 million vehicles sold globally. [2]

Kia offers hybrid and electric vehicles under several brands, including K3, K5, K7, K9, Soul, Sedona, Sorento, Sportage, and EV6. In Jan 2023, NACTOY named the 2023 Kia EV6 as the North American Utility Vehicle of the Year.

The 2023 Kia Sportage Hybrid SUV and the 2023 Kia Telluride won Best Car To Buy 2023 awards from The Car Connection. The Kia Sportage Hybrid SUV was also recognized as the 2023 Edmunds Top Rated SUV and took top honors in the Best Cars for the Money awards from US News. [3]

Kia seeks to boost customer value and profitability while cementing its global EV leadership. The company has almost completed its EV plant in Korea, which will produce the Kia EV3. In Oct 2023, Kia unveiled three new electric models at its annual Kia EV Day in Korea.

The list includes the Kia EV5 compact SUV targeting millennial families, the Kia Concept EV3 SUV, and the Kia Concept EV4 sedan. But who owns Kia? [4]

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Who is Kia’s Parent Company?

Kia’s parent company is Hyundai Motor Group (HMG), a Seoul, South Korea-based chaebol. A chaebol is similar to a multinational conglomerate but lacks a central holding company or ownership structure.

The HMG was formed in 1998 when Hyundai Motors acquired 51% of Kia. In 2020, the HMG officially became the parent company of Hyundai and Kia.

The HMG represents Kia, Hyundai, and affiliated companies and brands interconnected by complex shareholding arrangements. In 2023, Hyundai Motor Group ranked 3^rd in global car sales.

Its automaker brands, Hyundai and Kia, overtook Samsung Electronics to take the first and second spots in the operating profits list of public Korean companies. [5]

Hyundai Motor Group plans to boost its profitability by launching new Kia and Hyundai models with advanced features. The parent company hired visionary designers and engineers at its R&D center to deliver innovative models.

In Mar 2023, Kia launched the 2023 version of its Seltos SUV in India with several updates. The 2023 Kia Seltos compact SUV now meets the BS6 Phase 2 and RDE emissions. The model has idle start-stop as standard to boost fuel efficiency in ‘stop-and-go’ situations. [6]

Hyundai Motors is benefiting from its parent company’s commitment to innovation. HMG’s investment is paying off. In Jan 2024, Hyundai won six 2023 GOOD DESIGN AWARDS in the Transportation and Interactive Media categories.

The award-winning products were N Vision 74, IONIQ 6, Grandeur Azera, Kona, Seon, and Hyundai Sans UI. [7]

Hyundai Motor Group is committed to fulfilling its auto brands’ electrification ambitions. The automaking alliance of HMG and Kia is America’s second-largest EV seller after the leader Tesla.

In 2023, Hyundai and Kia sold over 117,000 electric vehicles in the US, or about 8% of all new EVs nationwide. Hyundai and Kia dominate the EV market by churning out crossovers and SUVs. Only one of their EVs doesn’t qualify as a crossover or SUV, and all their plug-in hybrids are SUVs. [8]

Image Credit: Amal Abdulla

Ownership History

Kim Chul Ho founded Kia in Jun 1944 as Kyungsung Precision Industry to manufacture steel tubing and bicycle parts. He is the original Kia owner. Kim moved to Japan as a teenager to work in a steel mill. Vols

He used acquired skills to set up a business in Osaka and started making small bicycle parts. In 1944, Kim returned to Korea and established Kyungsung Precision Industry. The company developed Korea’s first domestic bicycle in 1951 and rebranded to Kia Industries a year later. Kia means “To rise from Asia.”

Kia expanded from making bicycle parts to producing Honda-licensed small motorcycles. By the 1960s, the company was building Mazda-licensed trucks.

Kia produced its first car in 1974 and signed agreements with Mazda, Fiat, and Hyundai to produce pre-designed vehicles for the domestic market. The automaker entered the US in 1992 and formed the Kia America (KMA) division. KMA celebrated its 30^th anniversary in Sep 2022. [9]

Kia’s first car sold in the US under its name was the Sephia sedan in 1994. Kia launched the Sportage SUV a year later. In 1997, the company filed for bankruptcy during the Asian financial crisis.

Hyundai acquired 51% of Kia, becoming the majority shareholder. The deal transferred Kia ownership to Hyundai. The company grew as part of the global Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group to become the fifth-largest automaker. [10]

Kia is Korea’s oldest auto manufacturer. The automaker invested €1.6 billion to design and construct its state-of-the-art European manufacturing facility in Žilina, Slovakia. As of 2015, the plant catered to around 54% of European demand for Kia’s product range.

The facility manufactured its first Cee’d car in 2006 and delivered the one-millionth Cee’d model nine years later. Over 100,000 Kia Sportage units were produced in Žilina in 2015. [11]

Kia benefited from its tie-up with Hyundai. Hyundai invested in improving Kia’s product quality and guided Kia to focus on Europe as a growth market. In 2008, Kia launched the popular Kia Soul model.

The company started production at its first US Kia plant in Georgia in Nov 2009. Kia introduced several innovative models, including Sorento, Telluride 3-row crossover, and EV6 GT. In Oct 2023, the Kia EV6 GT was recognized as one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2023 in the Transportation category. [12]

Image Credit: Hyundai Motor Group

Shareholder Structure

Kia is a public company specializing in automobile manufacturing. As of Dec 2023, Kia had 402,044,203 outstanding Stock A shares with one vote. This figure includes 241,849,268 free-float shares and 5,837,383 company-owned shares.

Kia Corp’s shareholder structure has insiders and institutions. Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Eui-Sun Chung is Kia’s largest insider shareholder, with 1.756% of the company or 7,061,331 shares. [13]

Kia’s shareholder structure has 382 institutional shareholders. These institutions own 45.28% of the float. Hyundai acquired a 51% stake in Kia to bail the company out of bankruptcy. Although Hyundai reduced its ownership to 33%, it is still Kia’s largest shareholder.

The National Pension Service of Korea owns 28,842,780 shares or 7.174%, followed by KIA Corp with 2.446%, and Kia’s Employee Stock Ownership Association with 1.839%. [14]

Kia’s shareholder structure is linked to Hyundai through its parent company, Hyundai Motor Group. As of Nov 2023, KIA Corp was Hyundai’s largest shareholder, with 26.2%. Chairman Eui-Sun Chung has a 1.07% share. Other top Hyundai shareholders include Hyundai Mobis Co., the National Pension Service of Korea, and Hyundai Rotem Company. [15]

References & more information