Hallyu Bank Signs Final IPO Agreement for Nasdaq Listing in the US

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Hallyu Bank recently completed an accounting audit for its Nasdaq listing in the United States and announced on the 22nd that it has selected and signed a contract with ‘AEGIS CAPITAL CORP’ as its IPO underwriter.

‘AEGIS CAPITAL CORP’ is a U.S.-based asset management and financial services specialist established in 1984. It provides corporate finance, strategic advisory, and related services to individuals, public entities, and corporations, and has supported Nasdaq listings for companies such as Cyngn Inc, Volcon Inc, Farmmi Inc, and Meten Holding Group Ltd.

With this underwriter selection, Hallyu Bank plans to officially submit listing-related documents to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in November. It will also conduct the first in-person roadshow in the U.S. since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to this, Hallyu Bank proceeded with Nasdaq listing and audit procedures through global expansion strategy consulting from the U.S. KPMG, a global accounting and consulting firm. On September 28, it received a corporate valuation of $460 million (approximately 540 billion KRW) through KPMG’s Equity Value report.

Additionally, through a contract with the law firm ‘Disclosure Law Group,’ it has been receiving advisory services and reviewing submission documents related to the listing.

The time to enter the U.S. stock market varies, but generally, after the SEC review process is completed, it takes about 2 to 3 months from the submission of the securities registration statement to the determination of the public offering price and the listing.

Hallyu Bank was established with the purpose of spreading the Korean Wave (Hallyu). It is an IT business company growing by integrating various business areas such as finance, media, AI, and blockchain into Hallyu, which has been traditionally defined only as entertainment.

Its main businesses include ‘FANTOO,’ a fandom network service based on Hallyu, the blockchain mainnet ‘FANDOMCHAIN,’ and ERP services that form the foundation of its IB business.

It also operates ‘Hallyu Times,’ a global comprehensive media company that broadcasts Hallyu news worldwide in multiple languages, contributing to the spread of Hallyu, and ‘K-Commerce,’ a live commerce company that provides live content such as live shopping, festivals, culture, and performances worldwide.

In particular, it recently established Fantoo Entertainment and plans to expand and lead global Hallyu culture by nurturing idol groups and strengthening content.

Alongside this, to secure a leading position in the emerging artificial intelligence (AI) industry, it plans to launch AI services such as the chatbot Sejong Taebot, AI voice messenger, K-Knowledge Graph, and FANTOO NFT utilizing its proprietary blockchain technology, the FANDOMCHAIN mainnet.

Hallyu Bank intends to invest the funds raised through this IPO in nurturing a global Hallyu platform and developing digital innovation technologies with high growth potential, such as AI and blockchain technologies. It also plans to actively foster content businesses that lead the globalization of Hallyu, including support for cultural content production that can accelerate entry into new Hallyu markets.

The governance structure will have Hallyu Holdings in the U.S. as the largest shareholder of Hallyu Bank. A Hallyu Bank official stated, “The Nasdaq listing in the U.S. will secure resources to develop technologies and content for spreading Hallyu, while simultaneously gaining promotional effects for the global Hallyu platform FANTOO in the U.S. market,” adding, “We will expedite the listing process to continue sustained investment in technology development and Hallyu content production as a comprehensive IT platform company.”

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