Large securities firms such as Mirae Asset Securities and Samsung Securities have been widely named as candidates to underwrite the initial public offering (IPO) of Musinsa, the "K-fashion unicorn" whose valuation is cited at up to 10 trillion won. Shinhan Investment & Securities and Hana Securities, which led the listing of APR, now the leading K-beauty stock, were also picked as Musinsa underwriter candidates.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 30th, Musinsa the previous day selected and notified around 10 domestic and foreign securities firms as candidates for a competitive presentation (PT), known as a shortlist (qualified candidates). It came about two months after it distributed a request for proposal (RFP) for selecting IPO underwriters to major domestic and overseas securities firms 지난 month.
The shortlist was narrowed to about six domestic securities firms and four foreign securities firms. Among domestic securities firms, Mirae Asset Securities, Samsung Securities, KB Securities, Shinhan Investment & Securities, and Hana Securities made the list. Korea Investment & Securities was also selected. Among foreign securities firms, most global IBs, including JPMorgan, UBS, and Citi, were reportedly included.
What stands out is Shinhan Investment & Securities and Hana Securities. While Mirae Asset Securities, Samsung Securities, and KB Securities are considered large firms in the IPO underwriting "top tier," Shinhan Investment & Securities and Hana Securities focus on mid-sized deals rather than trillion-won IPOs and are assessed as lagging large firms in underwriting performance.
Musinsa is reportedly aiming for a valuation of 10 trillion won, known as a decacorn. In fact, as Musinsa requested that the RFP include records of underwriting trillion-won big deals and experiences overcoming challenges faced during listing attempts, the underwriting syndicate is expected to be formed by large securities firms.
Musinsa is said to have highly evaluated Shinhan Investment & Securities and Hana Securities for underwriting APR's listing. APR advanced straight to the KOSPI with a growth story as a beauty-tech corporations equipped with beauty devices, at a valuation of 2 trillion won. Shinhan Investment & Securities was the lead underwriter, and Hana Securities was a co-underwriter.
There is speculation that Musinsa will move in earnest to prepare for a listing as soon as it completes the underwriter selection process. Considering the proposal submission deadline was 19th, it selected the shortlist in 10 days. In addition, Musinsa is said to have scheduled the competitive underwriter selection PT for the end of next month.
Meanwhile, Musinsa, which began as an online fashion community in 2001, has grown into Korea's largest online fashion platform, generating sales in the trillion-won range. In 2023, it attracted a 200 billion won investment from global private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), winning recognition for a valuation exceeding 3 trillion won.