Shinhan Investment Corp said on March 13 it signed a memorandum of understanding with Bridgecode to strengthen advisory services for succession-oriented mergers and acquisitions involving small and medium-sized companies.

It plans to systematically provide not only a range of tasks that arise during business succession for owner clients doing business mainly with Shinhan Investment and Shinhan Bank, but also third-party succession M&A advisory services for companies where family succession is difficult.

It also said it will actively respond at the group level, starting with this MOU, to the policy direction on promoting succession M&A announced by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on Dec. 24 last year.

To that end, it will form and operate the first stage of a "succession matrix" centered on agile organisations at the bank and securities units that link functions including banking and securities within the group.

It also plans to serve as a private-sector "succession support centre" that contributes to creating a succession support ecosystem combining policy, financial and private-sector expertise, depending on the institutional environment and market conditions.

A Shinhan Investment official said, "Succession is not simply a transfer of ownership, but an issue of corporate sustainability, industrial competitiveness and the capital market." The official added, "Through this cooperation, we will present practical solutions so that small and mid-sized companies can naturally be carried on to the next generation."