South Korea may toughen rules for share tender offers to help shield domestic companies from hostile takeover attempts, a senior official at the top financial regulator said on Tuesday.

The comment came after US investors including Carl Icahn made an unsolicited takeover offer for South Korea's largest tobacco maker, KT&G Corp, sparking calls from domestic media for tougher regulations.
Kim Yong-hwan, an official at the Financial Supervisory Commission, told reporters the regulator might consider reviving a rule requiring an investor willing to buy 25 per cent or more of a firm listed on the local exchange to buy more than 50 per cent.
"The commission may consider introducing the compulsory tender offer requirement," Kim was quoted by an official from his team as telling reporters. "As the hostile takeover has become a social issue, the government now feels the need to do something to help better protect companies, while complying with global standards."
The requirement was abolished in the aftermath of the 1997-98 financial crisis at the recommendation from the International Monetary Fund, which led an international bailout of South Korea when the country was on the verge of sovereign insolvency. (pi)