Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs, Douglas Research Advisory

Douglas Kim

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs

Douglas Research Advisory

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>One of the big thematic events on the Korean stock market has been the expectation that China could lift ban on Korean popular culture (Hallyu) as early as May 2025. </li>
<li>China's President Xi recently stated <em>"Cultural exchanges are a valuable part of our bilateral relations [between China and Korea]. We should avoid any problems occurring in handling such matters.” </em>
</li>
<li>We provide a list of 40 stocks in Korea that could most benefit from the end of lifting ban of Korean popular culture. </li>
</ul>


One of the big thematic events on the Korean stock market has been the expectation that China could lift ban on Korean popular culture (Hallyu) as early as May 2025. 
China's President Xi recently stated "Cultural exchanges are a valuable part of our bilateral relations [between China and Korea]. We should avoid any problems occurring in handling such matters.” 

We provide a list of 40 stocks in Korea that could most benefit from the end of lifting ban of Korean popular culture. 


China Could Lift Ban on Korean Popular Culture (Hallyu) As Early As May 2025

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/shift-up-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:36232:1" rel="noopener">Shift Up (462870 KS)</a> raised around US$320m in its South Korean IPO, after pricing at the top. Around US$1.2bn worth of shares will be released from their lockup soon.</li>
<li>Shift Up is a South Korean games developer, which as released three games so far for the global markets.</li>
<li>In this note, we will talk about the lockup dynamics and possible placement.</li>
</ul>



Shift Up (462870 KS) raised around US$320m in its South Korean IPO, after pricing at the top. Around US$1.2bn worth of shares will be released from their lockup soon.
Shift Up is a South Korean games developer, which as released three games so far for the global markets.
In this note, we will talk about the lockup dynamics and possible placement.


Shift Up IPO Lockup - US$1.2bn Lockup Release of Strategic, Employees and IPO Investors

Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/shift-up-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:36232:1" rel="noopener">Shift Up (462870 KS)</a> raised around US$320m in its South Korean IPO, after pricing at the top.</li>
<li>Shift Up is a South Korean games developer, which as released three games so far for the global markets.</li>
<li>We have looked at the company’s performance and valuation in our earlier notes. In this note, we talk about the trading dynamics.</li>
</ul>



Shift Up (462870 KS) raised around US$320m in its South Korean IPO, after pricing at the top.
Shift Up is a South Korean games developer, which as released three games so far for the global markets.
We have looked at the company’s performance and valuation in our earlier notes. In this note, we talk about the trading dynamics.


Shift Up IPO Trading - Strong Demand for Quality Asset but It Has Slipped Out of the Top Games

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/shift-up-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:36232:1" rel="noopener">Shift Up (462870 KS)</a> plans to raise up to US$320m in its South Korean IPO.</li>
<li>Shift Up is a South Korean games developer, which as released three games so far for the global markets.</li>
<li>We have looked at the company’s performance, undertaken a peer comparison and talked about valuations in our past notes. In this note, we talk about the refiling and other updates.</li>
</ul>



Shift Up (462870 KS) plans to raise up to US$320m in its South Korean IPO.
Shift Up is a South Korean games developer, which as released three games so far for the global markets.
We have looked at the company’s performance, undertaken a peer comparison and talked about valuations in our past notes. In this note, we talk about the refiling and other updates.


Shift Up IPO - Refiling and Other Updates, Not Ranked at the Top Anymore

Korea / Special Situations, Clepsydra Capital

Sanghyun Park

Korea / Special Situations

Korea / Special Sits, Pairs, Index Rebalancing

Clepsydra Capital

Investigate special situations, pairs, and index rebalancing trades in Korea.

<ul>
<li>FSS wants Nikke's MAU data to address revenue concerns. They also seek April and May sales data for Stellar Blade to address valuation concerns despite its recent launch.</li>
<li>Shift Up updated the prospectus with Nikke's increasing MAU data but didn't include Stellar Blade sales data. FSS may request further revisions, possibly delaying the IPO again.</li>
<li>Nikke's MAU has risen but plateaued versus the previous quarter, and uncertainty surrounds Stellar Blade's April-May sales, potentially impacting IPO pricing.</li>
</ul>


FSS wants Nikke's MAU data to address revenue concerns. They also seek April and May sales data for Stellar Blade to address valuation concerns despite its recent launch.
Shift Up updated the prospectus with Nikke's increasing MAU data but didn't include Stellar Blade sales data. FSS may request further revisions, possibly delaying the IPO again.
Nikke's MAU has risen but plateaued versus the previous quarter, and uncertainty surrounds Stellar Blade's April-May sales, potentially impacting IPO pricing.


What Did FSS Point Out to Shift Up? & What Impact Would It Have on Bookbuilding Sentiment?

South Korea

Pearl Abyss Corp. operates as a computer games making company. The Company offers games development, games exporting, and other services. Pearl Abyss serves customers worldwide.

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Pearl Abyss (263750 KS)

China Could Lift Ban on Korean Popular Culture (Hallyu) As Early As May 2025

One of the big thematic events that have impacted the Korean stock market this week has been the expectation that China could lift ban on Korean...

Douglas Kim

Shift Up IPO Lockup - US$1.2bn Lockup Release of Strategic, Employees and IPO Investors

Shift Up (462870 KS) raised around US$320m in its South Korean IPO, after pricing at the top. Around US$1.2bn worth of shares will be released from...

Sumeet Singh

Shift Up IPO Trading - Strong Demand for Quality Asset but It Has Slipped Out of the Top Games

Shift Up (462870 KS) raised around US$320m in its South Korean IPO, after pricing at the top. In this note, we talk about the trading dynamics.

Sumeet Singh

Shift Up IPO - Refiling and Other Updates, Not Ranked at the Top Anymore

Shift Up (462870 KS) plans to raise up to US$320m in its South Korean IPO. In this note, we talk about the refiling and other updates.

Sumeet Singh

What Did FSS Point Out to Shift Up? & What Impact Would It Have on Bookbuilding Sentiment?

This post investigates, based on the local market info, what FSS has pointed out to Shift Up for delaying the IPO schedule and explores their...

Sanghyun Park

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