10		Park's return to Pantech boosted by stock option March 15, 2010    Despite being under a debt workout program since 2007, Pantech Co., Korea's third-largest mobile phone maker after Samsung and LG Electronics, offered its chief executive and vice chairman Park Byeong-yeop a stock option of 164 million shares during the company’s general meeting last Friday. Granting a CEO any form of discounted option when a company is undergoing restructuring is considered unusual.   Industry experts say that through the unprecedented offer, Pantech shareholders are paving the way for Park’s comeback and also asking for responsible management. The company has made a profit for 10 consecutive quarters since entering a debt workout program.   The option granted to Park - 10 percent of the total shares issued - will be processed by issuing new shares. The striking price is 600 won ($0.53) per share, worth 100 billion won in total. This is a 20 percent premium on the price of 416 won that creditors gave shareholders during a debt-for-equity swap last year as part of the company's debt workout program.   Should Park purchase the new stocks, his share of the firm would increase to 9.091 percent, which would make him the third-largest shareholder of the company after the Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives and Korea Development Bank.   Should Pantech, as its shareholders hope, recover at a rapid pace, Park may even regain management of the company. Park founded Pantech in 1991. But as the company became financially troubled, he asked for corporate restructuring in December 2006. As the company entered debt workout, the vice chairman gave up his stake, including shares and company buildings, but creditors named him chief executive once again in 2007. "The stock option offer shows the creditors' faith in Park, who gave up all his shares and worked in the common ranks during difficult times," said an official at one of the creditors. By Moon Byung-joo [angie@joongang.co.kr]