Which Securities Firm Should You Choose for Kakao Games Subscription?

Samsung and Hanwha Secure Large Volume, Favoring High-Net-Worth Investors
Small Investors Likely to Rush to KB Securities at the Last Minute

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Kakao Games' public offering subscription for general investors began on the 1st. Having already set records such as the highest-ever competition rate and the largest number of institutional participants in the demand forecast for institutional investors, fierce competition is expected in this subscription as well.

According to Kakao Games' underwriting syndicate on the 1st, individual investors must hold at least one account with Korea Investment & Securities, Samsung Securities, or KB Securities, which are joint listing underwriters or part of the underwriting group, to participate in the subscription. The allocation volume differs by securities firm. Subscription limits and competition rates also vary, so choosing a favorable securities firm is essential.

The securities firm with the largest allocation is Korea Investment & Securities, with 1.76 million shares, accounting for 55% of the total 3.2 million shares allocated to general investors. The application limit per person is 58,000 shares. Preferred customers have significantly increased subscription limits. As of last month, if the average asset balance over the past three months is over 100 million KRW or the balance exceeds 500 million KRW, they can subscribe up to 174,000 shares, which is three times the basic subscription limit. Samsung Securities secured 1.28 million shares. The application limit per person is higher than Korea Investment & Securities at 60,000 shares. Customers with an average asset balance of over 100 million KRW last month or those who opened an account within one year and had an average balance of over 20 million KRW last month can subscribe up to 120,000 shares. This is why high-net-worth investors are expected to flock to these two securities firms.

KB Securities secured the smallest allocation with 160,000 shares. The application limit per person is 8,000 shares. However, unlike Korea Investment & Securities and Samsung Securities, where online non-face-to-face account holders can subscribe up to half the limit, online customers at KB Securities have the same limit as others. The account opening deadline is until 4 PM on the subscription closing day, giving some leeway. The criteria for preferred customers are relatively lower. Customers selected as 'KB Star Club' by KB Financial Group, based on comprehensive transaction performance over the past three months in securities, banking, life and non-life insurance, and credit cards, have their subscription limit doubled to 16,000 shares. Small investors may rush to KB Securities at the last minute.

The competition rate is expected to reach an all-time high. Earlier, the Financial Services Commission announced plans to promote preferential measures for small investors in future public offering subscriptions. Therefore, this subscription could be the last opportunity for relatively wealthy investors to launch a volume offensive through multiple subscriptions. Since the public offering scale is smaller than SK Biopharm, which sparked a public offering subscription frenzy in June, and interest in public offerings is currently high, the simple competition rate is expected to surpass SK Biopharm's (323 to 1). If Kakao Games records a competition rate similar to SK Biopharm, applying with a deposit of 100 million KRW for 8,300 shares (at an offering price of 24,000 KRW per share) would result in an allocation of about 25 shares. If the competition rate exceeds 1,000 to 1, even applying with the same 100 million KRW would only yield 8 shares.

A securities firm official said, "Since multiple subscriptions are possible at several securities firms, it is important to find the most advantageous combination and apply. Checking the competition rate on the last day and then applying can also be a method."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.