태산엘시디의 KIKO(키코) 관련 손실이 재무제표에 미친 영향

TaesanLCD is a rising manufacturing company focused on electronics industry. However, the firm is vulnerable to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuation, because most of the sales and significant portion of the raw materials are traded in foreign currency. The firm purchased KIKO(Knock-in Knock-out), a kind of foreign currency derivatives, in 2007 to hedge the foreign currency exchange risk. One can earn small profit if the exchange rate moves within a predetermined range, but make huge loss if the rate moves out of the range. During 1998, due to world economic crisis, the US$/ Korean Won exchange rate skyrocketed and eventually exceeded the predetermined range by the KIKO contract. As a result, TaesanLCD become bankrupt, recording huge loss on the contract. The Hana Bank, the main provider of KIKO to TaesanLCD, engaged in debt-equity swap and took over the firm. Not only TaesanLCD but also many other small business suffered huge loss at the same time. Those firms blamed several banks for the faulty sales of the KIKO as the reason for the loss and started legal battle against the banks. This case illustrates how the loss related to KIKO influence financial statements. Especially, in view of financial statement users, how to find information on KIKO and how to interpret it. In addition, this case also provides the chances to think the fairness of KIKO contract in view of banks that sold the KIKO and firms that purchased the KIKO. Finally, this case provides a chance to judge the appropriateness of a few controversial government policies implemented at that time to resolve the crisis of firms that suffered heavy loss due to KIKO.