This year, the number of newly listed corporations on the KOSDAQ market decreased, but as the size of public offerings grew, the market capitalization based on IPO price for newly listed issues hit the highest level since 2021. The substantive review process also sped up, and the number of corporations delisted for substantive reasons rose to about three times the average of the past three years.
On the 28th, the Korea Exchange (KRX) announced "2025 KOSDAQ market IPO and delisting settlement of account and future plans," which contained these details.
According to the Korea Exchange (KRX), excluding special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), 84 corporations were newly listed on the KOSDAQ market this year. Among them, general corporations increased to 49 from a year earlier, while technology corporations edged down to 35. SPAC listings fell by 15 from the previous year due to factors such as weaker demand.
Newly listed corporations raised about 2.5 trillion won through KOSDAQ market IPOs. Despite a decrease in the number of listed corporations, the size of public offerings expanded from a year earlier, and market capitalization based on IPO price reached 15.3 trillion won, the highest since 2021.
This year, an influx of solid, small but strong corporations led the qualitative growth of the IPO market, according to assessments. Entry into KOSDAQ was notable among competitive corporations, with five mid- to large-sized corporations with valuations of 500 billion won or more based on IPO price going public.
Accordingly, the average amount raised per newly listed corporation and its valuation (market capitalization based on IPO price) increased 12.5% and 17.0%, respectively, from a year earlier. As business potential stood out after listing, 11 corporations, including Aimed Bio, Orum Therapeutics, and Rznomics, surpassed 1 trillion won in market capitalization in the year of their listing.
The public offering market also showed a clear boom. This year's competition rate for IPO subscriptions averaged 1,128 to 1, a record high since 2021, and 87% of all listed corporations were priced at the top of their IPO ranges.
The IPO market is being reshaped around advanced corporations. As the number and share of listed corporations in sectors such as artificial intelligence (AI), biotech, semiconductors, and defense expanded, industries directly tied to the nation's future competitiveness are emerging as the center of the KOSDAQ market, the exchange analyzed.
The exit of weak corporations also expanded significantly. The KOSDAQ market decided to delist a total of 38 corporations this year, about 2.5 times the average of the past three years (2022–2024). Of these, 15 were delisted for formal reasons, about 2.1 times the three-year average, and 23 were delisted for substantive reasons, about three times the average.
A major factor was the shorter time required for substantive-review exits. For the 23 corporations delisted through substantive reviews this year, the average time required for exit was 384 days, down about 21% from the recent three-year average of 489 days. In particular, as reforms such as fewer deliberation stages, parallel reviews, and shorter improvement periods were fully applied, the average time required for exit among corporations delisted in the second half fell to 261 days, a 48% reduction from the first half (497 days).
The Korea Exchange (KRX) said, "We plan to faithfully carry out the role of the KOSDAQ market as a cradle of deep-tech corporations centered on advanced industries," adding, "We will upgrade listing review standards by industry, such as AI and space and aviation, to fit advanced technology trends and closely review the value of core technologies and their growth potential."
It added, "For insolvent corporations, we will establish a strict and swift exit system to ensure investor protection," and "We will add substantive-review criteria for technology-exception corporations and strengthen reviews of preferential corporations that distort the purpose of the exception-listing system."