Munhakdongne, which has published books by Han Kang·Haruki Murakami, puts the stake of the largest shareholder up for sale··· ‘Will it find capital that understands literature’ abuzz - 경향신문

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Visitors look around a wall displaying the Munhakdongne Poetry Series at the 2026 Seoul International Book Fair held at COEX in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, last June. Kwon Do-hyun

The largest shareholder of Munhakdongne, the top domestic trade book publisher, is pushing to sell a stake. Attention is focusing on potential changes at the flagship literary publisher that has brought out works by leading Korean authors, including Nobel Prize in Literature laureate Han Kang.

According to the publishing industry on the 14th, former CEO Kang Byeong-seon (pen name Kang Tae-hyeong), the founder of Munhakdongne, is seeking to sell his entire 41.5% stake. He is reportedly meeting multiple companies to explore sale options. The price is estimated to be in the tens of billions of won.

According to Munhakdongne audit reports, aside from Kang, 51.8% of shares are held by other shareholders, with 6.7% as treasury stock. The other shareholders are said to include writers and critics who took part in the founding and history of Munhakdongne.

Several literary figures who hold stakes in Munhakdongne said they had not heard detailed explanations about the move to sell Kang’s stake, saying “We were taken aback” and “There was hardly any internal discussion.” However, they acknowledge that Kang has continually spoken about tidying up his holdings, and they agree that, separate from the current publishing system at Munhakdongne, investment in digital and IT content requires the power of large capital.

Kang, who is currently abroad, is expected to return soon to brief other shareholders and related parties on the situation.

Munhakdongne was founded by Kang in 1993. Initially a weekly editor at the time of founding, he became CEO in 1995 and ran the company for 20 years. Over that period, Munhakdongne established itself as a leading literary publisher in Korea and, through more than 20 imprint brands spanning history, philosophy, science, and the artssuch as Geulhangari·Gyoyuseoga·Nanda·Elixirhas presented high-quality books.

As the number one publisher by domestic sales in trade books, last year’s revenue was around 37 billion won. Measured by revenue alone, that falls short of a typical small or mid-sized company, but its tangible and intangible influence on the domestic literary and knowledge markets rivals that of cultural content companies. Munhakdongne has published many works by leading Korean writers, including Nobel laureate Han Kang, Eun Hee-kyung, and Kim Young-ha. Han Kang’s next work, the final part of her ‘Winter Trilogy’ and her first novel since winning the Nobel Prize in Literature, is slated to be published by Munhakdongne, which has also acquired the rights to the new book by Haruki Murakami, <Gaho>.

The publishing industry is on alert over this sale of shares. If Kang’s stake is sold to a third-party company such as an IT firm rather than to a company already operating in publishing, the effects could reach beyond Munhakdongne to the literary and publishing sector as a whole.

With generative artificial intelligence penetrating not only creation and translation but publishing overall, many worry whether there will be a controlling shareholder who will lead the company by protecting the traditional values of literature over profit. Quarterly literary magazines issued to discover writers and raise the value of a publisher brand run in the red no matter how they are produced. World literature series, a hallmark of literary publishers, raise a house’s standing in the long term but are hard to make profitable in the short term. Hence skepticism about whether outside capital will understand such circumstances of literary publishers.

Jang Eun-su, head of the Editorial Culture Lab, wrote on Facebook regarding Kang’s decision to sell that it was a “good decision,” saying he had kept his promise to “do what he could until old age and someday hand it over to someone of purpose and then depart.” However, in a call with the Kyunghyang Shinmun he said, “The key is whether there is capital that truly understands literature and publishing.” A publishing industry source likewise said, “In the past, Kang invested in and was considerate toward writers without a calculator,” adding that it will not be easy for capital “that can draw a big picture beyond the calculator” to step in.

Some companies interested in buying are said to want a 100% acquisition, beyond Kang’s stake. Because Kang’s holdings involve the disposal of personal assets, it may not be easy for him to reverse course, but it remains uncertain whether all other shareholders will agree to sell.

If new large capital comes in and seeks to change the traditional system that Munhakdongne has built, internal pushback is expected. Should the bonds and trust formed between editors and writers be shaken, and should pride in being the top literary publisher in the country waver, departures from within may follow.

Out of such concerns, some Munhakdongne shareholders take a negative stance toward a sale and are calling for other solutions to strengthen the foundations of Munhakdongne. In this situation, obtaining the consent of all shareholders looks difficult in practice. A literary figure said, “It is not impossible that this sale attempt will end up as a mere episode.”