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Battle royal - Global Golf Post

dispute triggered by the proposed sale of equipment maker TaylorMade Golf by its majority owner took a new turn with the owner, Korean private equity firm Centroid Investment Partners, threatening to pursue expulsion of Seoul-based apparel company F&F Co. Ltd. as a TaylorMade investor, according to a report published Monday by eDaily, a Korean economic news outlet. Centroid, which bought TaylorMade from American private equity firm KPS Capital Partners for $1.7 billion in 2021, and F&F, which helped finance the deal and is believed to own nearly 50 percent of the company, have been at odds since early this year when Centroid first signaled it would consider selling the brand, contrary to its previously stated plans to take TaylorMade public. Centroid’s latest move, undertaken in tandem with other limited partners, according to the eDaily report, comes in response to F&F’s opposition to a sale – the apparel maker believes the terms of the 2021 acquisition grant it a right of first refusal to match the highest offer to buy TaylorMade and own the business outright, and a consent right that includes the right to block any transaction. Centroid is considering seeking expulsion of F&F as an investor to protect the interests of its other limited partners should F&F’s efforts to block a sale intensify, according to the report. A provision in the TaylorMade investment fund’s articles of incorporation allows shareholders to pursue expulsion of an investor in court for causes that include failure to fulfill investment obligations, misconduct and unauthorized representation, the report said. It added that an expelled investor will be refunded only 50 percent of its investment capital, with the payment potentially delayed until after the fund is liquidated. But because expelling investors against their will can adversely impact their financial interests so significantly, Korean courts apply strict