Krafton to devote 70% of near $4 bn raised from IPO on global M&As

Krafton Inc. readying near $4 billion initial public offering will develop its hit mobile game “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG)” into a variety of contents and spend 70 percent of its IPO proceeds for global M&As.

“Krafton will expand its game IPs into various content and establish its own universe to continue to create new IPs,” said Krafton CEO Kim Chang-han at an online press conference ahead of pricing session for IPO.

Krafton Chairman Chang Byung-gyu also stressed that Krafton is not just a game publisher but a company with a strong IP competitiveness based on games. Many people still don’t recognize Krafton as a company that creates movies or animations, Chang said, but he is sure that the future media industry will be developed based on content convergence with games.

“Krafton’s listing is a good opportunity for retail investors in Korea to invest in the global game market,” said Chang, emphasizing that Krafton is eyeing on the global market.

Krafton offers 8,644,230 shares with new shares accounting for 65 percent or 5,624,000 issues and existing shares 3,030,230 at a desired price band between 400,000 won and 498,000 won. At the top end, the IPO would raise 4.3 trillion won ($3.7 billion). Pricing ends Tuesday after an extensive two-week bookbuilding session. Public subscription takes place on Aug 2-3.

Regarding controversy on the overvaluation, Krafton chief financial officer (CFO) Bae Dong-geun said he understands different investors can have different opinions on the company, but he is sure that the company is one of just a handful of companies in the world that has a huge potential for long-term growth as a content and entertainment company.

“About 70 percent of the IPO proceeds will go to global M&A deals as we have been interacting with global companies having powerful IPs and studios,” said Bae.

“About 15 percent will be invested in overseas operation in India, the Middle East and North Africa and the remaining 15 percent will be spent on securing high-performing equipment,” he said.

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