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Photo = K-bank |
[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Jisun] K-Bank, an internet bank aiming to go public on the Korea Exchange, is facing difficulties after its demand forecast from institutional investors fell short, with the offering price likely to be set at the lower end of the expected range.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 16th, K-Bank's demand forecast closed that day. It is reported that the lead underwriters, including NH Investment & Securities and KB Securities, have requested the offering price be set at 8,500 KRW, below the initially expected range of 9,500 to 12,000 KRW.
K-Bank had hoped to be recognized as a platform business similar to KakaoBank, but institutional investors categorized it as a financial stock. In fact, K-Bank’s net interest income accounts for the majority of its total operating income. In the first half of this year, K-Bank recorded a net profit of 85.4 billion KRW, with net interest income alone amounting to 128.5 billion KRW.
K-Bank initially planned to offer 82 million shares, with the upper limit of the offering price range set at 12,000 KRW, potentially raising up to 984 billion KRW and pushing its market capitalization above 5 trillion KRW. However, an IB industry insider mentioned, "If demand is not met even at 8,500 KRW, there’s a possibility the listing may be withdrawn, and the offering size could be reduced by 20%."
Half of the K-Bank offering consists of sales of existing shares by current shareholders. K-Bank raised 1.25 trillion KRW through a rights offering in 2021, with private equity firms Bain Capital and MBK Partners participating as financial investors at the time.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
