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By Anna J. Park
While some of the most-anticipated IPOs this year are expected to be completed within the next few months, SKIET, which produces lithium-ion battery separators among other components, will be the first major listing to take place in the second quarter.
The firm will kick off the stock allotment and subscription process for institutional investors as well as retail investors near the end of this month. The initial offering stock price of the energy and chemical material arm of SK is set between 78,000 won and 105,000 won ($69 to $94), with its market cap estimated at around 5.56 trillion won and 7.48 trillion won.
Based on its solid financial statements, the battery materials company is expected to draw an ample number of institutional investors from both in and outside of the country. SKIET logged 469.3 billion won in annual revenue last year, with a net profit of 88.2 billion won.
With 213.9 million shares being offered for the IPO, SKIET could raise up to 2.24 trillion won if the stock's initial price is set at the maximum end of the price band. Mirae Asset Securities and JPMorgan are joint lead manager of the IPO process, while Korea Investment & Securities, Credit Suisse have also joined as underwriters.
Game developer Krafton is the next major IPO in the second quarter. Krafton is slated to kick off the official process by submitting a preliminary IPO review request to the Korea Exchange (KRX). Given that the preliminary review process takes 45 business days at the bourse operator, Krafton could start the stock allotment and subscription process with institutional and retail investors as early as late June.
The developer of the global hit, "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds," boasted impressive performance and growth last year. The company achieved an annual revenue of 1.6 trillion won with an operating profit of 773.9 billion won in 2020. This is up 54 percent year-on-year in annual revenue, and a 115 percent jump in operating profit. The firm's market cap is expected to be around 30 trillion won, based on the solid growth.
While Mirae Asset Securities manages the IPO as a book runner, NH Investment & Securities, Credit Suisse, Citigroup Global Markets and JPMorgan are joining the public offering of the global game company as underwriters.
Kakao Pay, the payment service arm of big-tech Kakao, is also planning to complete an IPO during the third quarter of this year. The company has yet to turn its net loss into a profit. But it managed to achieve 284 billion won in annual revenue, which is almost double that of the previous year.
Deciding to be listed on the benchmark KOSPI, Kakao Pay's IPO will be mainly managed by Samsung Securities, while Daishin Securities, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs are joining as underwriters.
