As the second half of this year has seen a chill in the initial public offering (IPO) market, more than half of the chief financial officers (CFOs) and financial executives of major domestic companies expect the market to continue in a similar state next year. While there are predictions that the situation will improve compared to the current state, many believe it will be difficult to recover to the levels seen in the booming first half of this year.

On the 10th, a survey conducted by Maeil Business Newspaper's 'Radar M' among CFOs and financial executives of 50 major domestic companies revealed that 53.1% of respondents expect the IPO market next year to be at a level similar to the downturn in the second half of this year.

Additionally, a significant portion (44.9%) responded that it would improve compared to the downturn in the second half of this year. However, expectations for a boom similar to the first half of this year were limited to just 2%.

Currently, the domestic IPO market is experiencing an unprecedented chill that makes the earlier boom seem distant.

In October, K-Bank, which was considered a major candidate for this year's largest IPO with a valuation of 5 trillion won, withdrew its listing due to poor demand forecasting. Following this, Dongbang Medical, Meatbox Global, CK Solution, Orum Therapeutics, and ISTE also withdrew their listings due to concerns over weak market demand.

Even when companies do go public, there have been numerous cases where the stock price on the first day falls below the offering price in the domestic securities market. With a few exceptions, most newly listed stocks are facing a harsh debut. Among the 13 companies that went public last month, all but Witz (129.53%) and Debon Korea (51.18%) saw their stock prices plummet below the offering price on the first day, further freezing investor sentiment.

Despite this situation, the company expected to have the most anticipated IPO next year (multiple responses) is Viva Republica (36.7%), the operator of the financial platform 'Toss'. Following this, LG CNS (32.7%) and CJ Olive Young (22.4%) have also garnered attention as notable candidates for new listings next year.



※Companies participating in the survey: Kumho Petrochemical, Nexon, Korean Air, Doosan, Dongwon Industries, Lotte Tourism Development, Lotte Shopping, Beuyoung, Viva Republica (Toss), Samsung SDS, Samsung Biologics, Samsung Electronics, Samchully, Shinsegae International, Shin Young, Socar, NCSoft, E-Mart, Jeju Air, Jungheung Construction, Kakao, Kolon, POSCO E&C, POSCO Future M, POSCO Holdings, Harim Holdings, Hanwha Solutions, Hanwha Aerospace, Hyundai Motor, Hyundai Steel, Hyundai GF Holdings, CJ Foodville, DL E&C, GS, GS Construction, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, HL Holdings, KT, KT&G, LG CNS, LG Display, LG Energy Solution, LG Innotek, LG Chem, LS Cable, SK Square, SK Eco Plant, SK Innovation, SK Telecom, SPC



[Oh Dae-seok, Reporter]