IPO Market Full of Sighs, Semiconductor Stocks Shine... Nextchip Exceeds Upper Limit of IPO Price Band

[Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] Semiconductor-related stocks are gaining attention despite the contraction in the initial public offering (IPO) market. Following the successful debut of Gaonchips, a system semiconductor design solution company, last month, Nextchip, a vehicle system semiconductor company set to enter the KOSDAQ on the 1st of next month, exceeded the upper limit of its public offering price in demand forecasting. This contrasts with SK Shielders, One Store, and Taelim Paper, which failed to attract interest and withdrew from the IPO market.

According to the financial investment industry on the 21st, Nextchip confirmed its public offering price at 13,000 KRW, surpassing the desired range (9,900 KRW to 11,600 KRW) after conducting demand forecasting targeting institutional investors.

A total of 1,687 institutions participated in the demand forecasting, with a simple competition rate recorded at 1,623 to 1. The total number of shares applied for was 3,165,650,000, and applications at or above 13,000 KRW accounted for 97.34% of the total number of applications. The volume under lock-up agreements accounts for 11.5% of the total.

Na Yu-seok, Executive Director in charge of IPOs at Daishin Securities, said, "Despite the recent difficult market conditions, competitive companies are attracting investors' attention."

Nextchip specializes in developing video recognition system semiconductors used in front and rear cameras of automobiles. Its major clients include Hyundai Motor Company, Kia, Renault Korea, China's BYD, and Japan's Toyota. With the advent of the autonomous vehicle era, demand for high-definition vehicle cameras and sensors is rapidly increasing, promising even greater growth.

Established in January 2019 through a physical division of the automotive business unit of NCN, a KOSDAQ-listed company, Nextchip is in its fourth year since establishment but has 10 years of research and development (R&D) experience. Since NCN, its parent company, established a corporate research institute in 2012, it has been engaged in designing and verifying automotive system semiconductors. Since its founding, it has invested 79.1 billion KRW in R&D and secured 69 domestic and international intellectual property rights, establishing proprietary core technologies.

Kim Kyung-soo, CEO of Nextchip, stated, "I understand that domestic institutional investors recognize Nextchip's future value and share its high growth potential, actively participating in the demand forecasting. Nextchip will live up to these expectations and stand out as a leading company in AI-based vehicle video signal processing and video recognition system semiconductors."

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