The number of initial public offerings (IPOs) this year is expected to reach 150, the largest in the 13 years since 2002. This is largely due to the fact that the Korea Exchange (KRX) has actively helped companies to list on the stock market, aiming to achieve 220 new IPOs this year, and the barriers for listing are lowered, which has led to more new listings.
However, some say that institutional investors’ demands are focused on only some industries, such as biotechnology and healthcare, increasing the polarization in the market.
This year, 13 companies were listed on the stock market, almost doubled from 7 last year. In the KOSDAQ market, the number of new IPOs significantly increased, from 66 last year to 78 this year.
In addition, there are a total of 95 companies listed on the KONEX Market, after 16 companies were delisted through transfers to KOSDAQ listings and M&As. Thirty-two companies have already been listed on the market this year, and about 40 companies are expected to enter the KONEX market by the end of the year.
Unlike the IPO market, which is getting hotter, investments in public offerings are selectively popular, and there are not even any investments in public offerings in some industries. Until the previous quarter, a large amount of liquidity was injected into the public offering market due to ultra-low interest rates. In the second half of the year, however, capital evaded the manufacturing industry and made indiscriminate investments in specific industries, such as pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. As a capital bottleneck phenomenon between industries stood out, some companies withdrew the listing.