Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs, Douglas Research Advisory

Douglas Kim

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs

Douglas Research Advisory

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>I recently visited Inspire Entertainment Resort in Yeongjeongdo, Korea with my family. </li>
<li>Overall, I was impressed with its modern, clean facilities, but despite its large size, there was a relative emptiness to the place that made it feel underutilized.</li>
<li>The management rights of Inspire Resort were transferred to Bain Capital from Mohegan Gaming &amp; Entertainment (MGE) in February 2025.</li>
</ul>


I recently visited Inspire Entertainment Resort in Yeongjeongdo, Korea with my family. 
Overall, I was impressed with its modern, clean facilities, but despite its large size, there was a relative emptiness to the place that made it feel underutilized.
The management rights of Inspire Resort were transferred to Bain Capital from Mohegan Gaming &amp; Entertainment (MGE) in February 2025.


A Visit to Inspire Integrated Resort in Incheon, South Korea

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>Emart and Shinsegae are facing concerns about put options of nearly 1 trillion won on private equity investors' investment in SSG.com nearly six years ago. </li>
<li>From AEP and BRV's point of views, they want to get their money back through put options since an IPO is not likely in the near term.</li>
<li>The most probable result appears to be that this is likely to be dragged on for some time, which will cause continued concerns on both Emart and Shinsegae. </li>
</ul>


Emart and Shinsegae are facing concerns about put options of nearly 1 trillion won on private equity investors' investment in SSG.com nearly six years ago. 
From AEP and BRV's point of views, they want to get their money back through put options since an IPO is not likely in the near term.
The most probable result appears to be that this is likely to be dragged on for some time, which will cause continued concerns on both Emart and Shinsegae. 


Legal Complications on Put Options on SSG.Com to Result in Ongoing Concerns for Emart and Shinsegae

<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

Asia Pac IPO & Placement Research, China biotech, Aequitas Research

Ke Yan, CFA, FRM

Asia Pac IPO & Placement Research, China biotech

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.

Quantitative Analysis

<ul>
<li>We analyzed the changes in short interest of KRX stocks as of Dec 6th which has an aggregated short interest worth USD3.8bn.</li>
<li>We tabulate league table for top short by value and short as multiple of ADT, as well as weekly increases &amp; decreases in short value, short as multiple of ADT.</li>
<li>We highlight short interest changes in Lg Energy Solution, Samsung Electronics, KB Financial.</li>
</ul>


We analyzed the changes in short interest of KRX stocks as of Dec 6th which has an aggregated short interest worth USD3.8bn.
We tabulate league table for top short by value and short as multiple of ADT, as well as weekly increases &amp; decreases in short value, short as multiple of ADT.
We highlight short interest changes in Lg Energy Solution, Samsung Electronics, KB Financial.


KRX Short Interest Weekly (Dec 6th): Lg Energy Solution, Samsung Electronics, KB Financial

<ul>
<li>Despite Shinsegae Group's to officially separate into two main business operations (E-Mart vs Shinsegae), this separation has already been in place essentially in the past several years.</li>
<li>Valuations remain compelling for both companies as they are trading at near historical low valuations.</li>
<li>Going forward, expect more management shakeups, especially at E-Mart as the company tries to stage a major turnaround of its operations, especially in terms of profitability. </li>
</ul>


Despite Shinsegae Group's to officially separate into two main business operations (E-Mart vs Shinsegae), this separation has already been in place essentially in the past several years.
Valuations remain compelling for both companies as they are trading at near historical low valuations.
Going forward, expect more management shakeups, especially at E-Mart as the company tries to stage a major turnaround of its operations, especially in terms of profitability. 


Shinsegae Officially Reorganizes Its Group Structure Into Two Different Subgroups

South Korea

Shinsegae Co., Ltd. operates department stores in South Korea.  The Company retails food, clothing, household goods, electronics, and other items through several branch stores.

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Shinsegae (004170 KS)

A Visit to Inspire Integrated Resort in Incheon, South Korea

I recently visited Inspire Entertainment Resort in Yeongjeongdo, Korea. I was impressed with its modern facilities, but there was a relative...

Douglas Kim

Legal Complications on Put Options on SSG.Com to Result in Ongoing Concerns for Emart and Shinsegae

Emart and Shinsegae are facing concerns about put options of nearly 1 trillion won on private equity investors' investment in SSG.com nearly six...

Douglas Kim

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

KRX Short Interest Weekly (Dec 6th): Lg Energy Solution, Samsung Electronics, KB Financial

We analyzed KRX short interest report for the past week and highlighted short interest changes in Lg Energy Solution, Samsung Electronics, KB...

Ke Yan, CFA, FRM

Shinsegae Officially Reorganizes Its Group Structure Into Two Different Subgroups

Going forward, expect more management shakeups, especially at E-Mart as the company tries to stage a major turnaround of its operations, especially...

Douglas Kim

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