IPO proceeds in Korea rise 15 percent in 2025 despite fewer debuts
Published: 04 Mar. 2026, 15:14
Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi), top right, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, Korea on Feb. 2. [AP/YONHAP]
Combined proceeds from initial public offerings (IPOs) in South Korea increased by about 15 percent from a year earlier in 2025, data showed Wednesday.
The proceeds from IPOs stood at 4.5 trillion won ($3.04 billion) last year, compared with 3.9 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
A total of 76 companies made their debuts on the benchmark Kospi and the secondary Kosdaq markets last year, down from 77 companies going public a year earlier.
LG CNS, an information technology affiliate of LG Electronics, amassed the largest amount of IPO money at 1.2 trillion won, followed by DH Shipbuilding with 500 billion won and Seoul Guarantee Insurance at 182 billion won.
Some 41 percent of IPO shares were first allotted to institutional investors who guarantee the holdings of IPO shares for a certain period, usually three to six months.
The average subscription rate for IPOs by retail investors stood at 1.1 last year, the data showed.
Yonhap
