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.

Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sk-telecom-co-ltd-bbccd86c-474d-4a4d-946d-10e911a225a2" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:395:1" rel="noopener">SK Telecom (017670 KS)</a> plans to raise around US$280m via selling its 2%+ stake in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kakao-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15002:1" rel="noopener">Kakao Corp (035720 KS)</a>.</li>
<li>Kakao’s recent performance hasn’t been particularly great and the stock has been suffering even since the Kakao Pay management scandal in 2021.</li>
<li>In this note, we will run the deal through our ECM framework and talk about the recent updates.</li>
</ul>



SK Telecom (017670 KS) plans to raise around US$280m via selling its 2%+ stake in Kakao Corp (035720 KS).
Kakao’s recent performance hasn’t been particularly great and the stock has been suffering even since the Kakao Pay management scandal in 2021.
In this note, we will run the deal through our ECM framework and talk about the recent updates.


Kakao Corp Placement - Momentum Isn’t Great but It Is a Small Deal

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs, Douglas Research Advisory

Douglas Kim

Korea/Asia, Events, IPOs

Douglas Research Advisory

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>There has been a big crypto money move in Korea. Market cap of crypto currencies held in crypto exchanges in Korea nearly doubled from October to November 2024. </li>
<li>We discuss 8 major listed companies in Korea that are major beneficiaries (directly and indirectly) of this big move into crypto currencies in Korea. </li>
<li>Some of the major beneficiaries include Kakao Corp, KT Corp, Hanwha Securities, Woori Technology Investment, and Vidente.</li>
</ul>


There has been a big crypto money move in Korea. Market cap of crypto currencies held in crypto exchanges in Korea nearly doubled from October to November 2024. 
We discuss 8 major listed companies in Korea that are major beneficiaries (directly and indirectly) of this big move into crypto currencies in Korea. 
Some of the major beneficiaries include Kakao Corp, KT Corp, Hanwha Securities, Woori Technology Investment, and Vidente.


Big Crypto Money Move in Korea - Impact on Key Listed Korean Companies

External broker reports(aggregated public sources), Daishin Securities

Daishin Securities

External broker reports(aggregated public sources)

Founded in 1962, Daishin Securities is a leading financial services provider in Korea. Daishin securities does its best to provide high quality financial service and to satisfy the various needs of investors. Content available is external broker reports authored by a third party outside the Smartkarma network and has been aggregated by an online aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed by Smartkarma in this format for user's convenience and general informational purposes only. Content does not constitute investment or financial advice and Smartkarma makes no representation or warranty regarding its accuracy or contents. Original third party author retains all copyright and other proprietary rights in the content. Access or use of third party links not controlled by Smartkarma are at the user's own risk.

<ul><li>1Q25 earnings miss likely, core businesses slowing, content segment remains sluggish </li><li>Development of new services scheduled for 2025 rollout on KakaoTalk remains on track </li><li>Improved traffic following the rollout could serve as positive catalyst for stock price</li></ul><p><em>Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.</em></p>

1Q25 earnings miss likely, core businesses slowing, content segment remains sluggish Development of new services scheduled for 2025 rollout on KakaoTalk remains on track Improved traffic following the rollout could serve as positive catalyst for stock priceContent is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>Kakao Corp (035720 KS) has two near-term positive catalysts. First is treasury shares cancellation. Second is insiders buying of its shares.</li>
<li>These moves suggest the management's confidence in the company's outlook ahead of the AGM on 26 March. </li>
<li>In our view, one of the major reasons why the insiders are buying could be due to Kakao's collaboration with OpenAI. </li>
</ul>


Kakao Corp (035720 KS) has two near-term positive catalysts. First is treasury shares cancellation. Second is insiders buying of its shares.
These moves suggest the management's confidence in the company's outlook ahead of the AGM on 26 March. 
In our view, one of the major reasons why the insiders are buying could be due to Kakao's collaboration with OpenAI. 


Kakao Corp: Insiders Are Buying and Cancellation of Treasury Shares

Korea / Special Sits, Pairs, Index Rebalancing, Clepsydra Capital

Sanghyun Park

Korea / Special Sits, Pairs, Index Rebalancing

Clepsydra Capital

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

<ul>
<li>The key point is Saturday—watch if eight ruling party lawmakers defect. Hahn Dong-hoon may push for an early election, with 15 loyalists backing him, so it’s definitely possible.</li>
<li>I’d bet on the ruling party leader pivoting, accepting impeachment, and pushing for an early election. Time to scout beneficiaries and set up an aggressive trading play.</li>
<li>Short-Term, I’m eyeing Kakao affiliates, under-the-radar IT stocks, and those likely to benefit from corporate governance changes. Low birth rate-related sectors are also set for strong upside.</li>
</ul>


The key point is Saturday—watch if eight ruling party lawmakers defect. Hahn Dong-hoon may push for an early election, with 15 loyalists backing him, so it’s definitely possible.
I’d bet on the ruling party leader pivoting, accepting impeachment, and pushing for an early election. Time to scout beneficiaries and set up an aggressive trading play.
Short-Term, I’m eyeing Kakao affiliates, under-the-radar IT stocks, and those likely to benefit from corporate governance changes. Low birth rate-related sectors are also set for strong upside.


Latest Scoop on President Yoon’s Impeachment Motion and How to Play It in the Market

South Korea

Kakao Corp. provides Internet portal services such as news, free e-mail, and leisure information.  The Company also offers cross-platform mobile messaging application that allows users to exchange messages.

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Kakao Corp (035720 KS)

Kakao Corp Placement - Momentum Isn’t Great but It Is a Small Deal

SK Telecom (017670 KS) plans to raise around US$280m via selling its 2%+ stake in Kakao Corp (035720 KS). In this note, we talk about the deal...

Sumeet Singh

Big Crypto Money Move in Korea - Impact on Key Listed Korean Companies

There has been a big crypto money move in Korea. We discuss 8 major listed companies in Korea that are major beneficiaries (directly and...

Douglas Kim

Kakao (035720 KS Apr 14, 2025)

1Q25 earnings miss likely, core businesses slowing, content segment remains sluggish. Development of new services scheduled for 2025 rollout on...

Daishin Securities

Kakao Corp: Insiders Are Buying and Cancellation of Treasury Shares

Kakao Corp (035720 KS) has two near-term positive catalysts. First is treasury shares cancellation. Second is insiders buying of its shares.

Douglas Kim

Latest Scoop on President Yoon’s Impeachment Motion and How to Play It in the Market

Yoon’s impeachment vote is locked in for Saturday at 7 PM, and today’s market? Total whiplash. The ruling party’s boycott plan throws odds back...

Sanghyun Park

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