Hallyu Holdings, Will It Become the First Korean Startup Listed on NASDAQ?

Press Conference on the 6th: "Possible to Go Public Within Two Months"

Jaeman Lee, General Manager of Hallyu Bank

Platform company Hallyu Holdings is attempting to become the first Korean startup to directly list on the Nasdaq. At a press conference held on the 6th, Hallyu Holdings announced, "We have recently submitted the 2022 audited financial statements and the S-1 report to the U.S. SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) in preparation for the Nasdaq listing," adding, "Only the final approval stage remains, and the listing could occur within two months."

The S-1 is a document filed with the SEC for an IPO (Initial Public Offering). Hallyu Holdings' listing sponsor is Aegis Capital. If the direct listing materializes, it will be possible to subscribe to the public offering shares through subscription agency services in Korea. Hallyu Holdings stated, "The expected public offering size is approximately 35 million USD (about 47 billion KRW)."

Hallyu Holdings has six subsidiaries and affiliates. According to SEC documents, last year's revenue was about 1.2 billion KRW, with 74 employees. The asset size is approximately 8 billion KRW. In the past, the company received a valuation of about 540 billion KRW based on a stock valuation report by the global accounting firm KPMG USA. During the listing preparation process, it also secured funding, including a 5.5 billion KRW investment from Setopia.

Hallyu Holdings' main business is the global fandom platform "FANTOO," operated by its subsidiary Hallyu Bank. It has about 25 million users across more than 150 countries, with over 80% of users overseas. FANTOO features real-time translation capabilities, enabling free communication regardless of nationality. Users can directly process and share content, and receive rewards accordingly.

So far, ten Korean companies, including Thrunet (listed in 1999), have directly listed on Nasdaq without going through the domestic stock market. However, except for Gravity (listed in 2005), nine of these companies have been delisted. This was due to insufficiently large revenue and business scale to maintain the listing, as well as a lack of communication with investors. Looking at the U.S. stock market more broadly, Coupang's listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2021 is a recent example of market entry.

The higher cost of maintaining a listing compared to Korea is also a burden. It costs about 4 billion KRW annually to maintain a listing, which is about 20 times the cost on KOSDAQ. If Hallyu Holdings succeeds in its Nasdaq direct listing, it will be the first Korean startup to do so. More than ten companies, including Market Kurly, Yanolja, Today’s House, Skylabs, and Woowa Brothers, have been mentioned as candidates, but none have materialized yet.

To avoid becoming like companies that have undergone delisting in the past, Hallyu Holdings plans to increase its value through business diversification with various partners within the group. Hallyu Times, a media company, is a representative example, delivering news related to Hallyu content translated into various languages. K-Commerce, which operates "Celeb Live," is active in the shopping market with an open market solution. Fantoo Entertainment produces music, plans performances, and creates content by discovering and nurturing new artists.

Hallyu Holdings said, "We are pleased to share the achievement of a Nasdaq direct listing through this press conference," adding, "Our company already has a diverse range of business sectors for Hallyu content, enabling rapid entry into the global market. Please watch our growth as a leading K-content company."

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