Foreign Media Also Interested in Big Hit's First-Day Surge... Concerns That BTS's Enlistment Will Soon Bring a Hiatus

US WSJ·CNN, UK BBC and Others Simultaneously Report

On the 15th, the day BigHit, the agency of the group BTS, entered the KOSPI, an official at Yonhap Infomax in Jongno-gu, Seoul, is examining the BigHit stock price graph. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Big Hit Entertainment, the agency of the group BTS, attracted significant attention from foreign media after being listed on the KOSPI.

On the 15th (local time), the US 'Wall Street Journal' (WSJ) reported the news of Big Hit's stock trading under the headline "BTS Fever Drives K-Pop IPO Success."

WSJ stated, "Big Hit's corporate value has reached $8.5 billion (approximately 9.7 trillion KRW)," and compared it to major US record label Warner Music, which is estimated to have a corporate value of $15 billion (approximately 17.2 trillion KRW).

Meanwhile, US CNN also reported that Big Hit achieved a market capitalization much larger than the three major domestic entertainment agencies JYP, SM, and YG Entertainment, calling it "an unprecedented success."

However, the broadcast also covered risk factors that could affect Big Hit's stock price in the future. CNN relayed market analysis pointing out that about 90% of Big Hit's revenue depends on BTS, highlighting that "the group members will soon face a significant hiatus due to mandatory military service."

Group BTS. / Photo by Yonhap News

UK's BBC reported that with Big Hit's listing, Big Hit CEO Bang Si-hyuk became a billionaire, and BTS members who received shares each joined the ranks of millionaires.

BBC said, "BTS is one of the world's biggest celebrities," and added, "Many investors considered participating in Big Hit's IPO a 'safe bet' because BTS is expected to continuously generate profits for Big Hit."

Meanwhile, on the first day of trading, Big Hit closed below its opening price. After raising 58 trillion KRW in subscription deposits during the IPO, Big Hit's opening price was set at double the offering price at the start of trading, and it soared to the upper limit price of 351,000 KRW, achieving a 'double up' (ttasang).

However, the upper limit was soon lifted, and the stock's gains sharply decreased, eventually falling about four hours after the market opened. In the end, Big Hit closed at 258,000 KRW, down 4.44% from the opening price of 270,000 KRW on the KOSPI market that day.

Nevertheless, this price still nearly doubles the offering price (135,000 KRW), and based on the closing price, Big Hit's market capitalization reached 8.7323 trillion KRW, ranking 32nd on the KOSPI.

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