By Paik Ji-young
jyp@ddaily.co.kr

[Digital Daily]

IBM Korea is evoking criticism as it paid the highest ever amount of money to its US head office as stock dividends last year despite the worst-ever business performance of the company in the year. IBM Korea paid over 400 billion won to the head office in 2014, including stock dividends, patent fees and royalties for the use of software and other programs. The number of employees at IBM Korea, however, fell nearly by 500, compared to 2012.

An analysis of the audit report that IBM Korea submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service revealed on April 14 that the company’s total sales fell 14 percent to 1,054.4 billion won last year, compared to 2013. Its net and operating profits also decreased 59 percent to 47.8 billion won and 68 percent to 45.9 billion won, respectively. On the other hand, its dividend payment to the head office in the US amounted to 117.2 billion won in the year, which is about 2.5 times the annual profit.

Dividend payment was not all that it paid to the US head office. In addition, IBM Korea paid hundreds of billion won to the head office as patent fees and royalties, which each amounted to 2-3 percent and 60 percent of its net sales. The amounts of money paid as patent fees and royalties last year were 146.8 billion and 145.0 billion won, respectively. Including dividend payment, IBM Korea paid a total of 409 billion won to the head office, which accounts for around 40 percent of its total annual sales.

Contrary to the enormous amount of money it paid to the head office, however, IBM Korea’s domestic employment has decreased. As of Dec. 31, 2014, the company employed 2.024 people as a total of 482 people had left it over the past two years.