This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 3:22 p.m. on Apr. 22, 2026.
Praxis Capital is moving in earnest to sell music copyright (IP) investment firm Beyond Music. It has begun sounding out potential buyers through its sale manager. The goal is to enter a preliminary bid (non-binding bid) in the first half.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 22nd, Praxis Capital has begun soft tapping (pre-marketing) through its sale manager, Citigroup Global Markets Securities. It has finished distributing teaser letters and is checking potential investors' responses. An industry official said, "They are checking the pool of potential buyers before officially launching the sale," and noted, "They are expected to gauge market response through a preliminary bid within the first half."
Beyond Music is seen as highly attractive for sale thanks to stable cash generation. Given the characteristics of a music IP-based business, revenue volatility is low, and with a revenue structure centered on neighboring rights, the expense burden is limited. As a result, a structure is in place in which sales flow straight to profit, giving it a "cash cow" profile comparable to an infrastructure asset. Last year's sales on a consolidation basis were about 31 billion won.
The key variable in this sale is the buyer makeup. The sell-side is contacting a potential pool of strategic investors (SI) and financial investors (FI) to gauge demand. Given the asset characteristics of a music IP investment firm, global content corporations, platform operators, and private equity fund (PEF) managers are cited as the main candidates. In particular, whether a strategic investor that can expect synergies with content businesses participates is likely to affect both the probability of the transaction closing and price formation.
The timeline is also taking shape. Considering that in a typical merger and acquisition (M&A), a preliminary bid is held about one to two months after soft tapping, non-binding bids are likely to be accepted around June at the earliest. The sell-side is simultaneously preparing a virtual data room (VDR) and readiness for due diligence as it gears up to launch the deal in earnest. After a shortlist is selected and price negotiations are held, the transaction is expected to close within the year.
The sell-side's hoped-for transaction price for Beyond Music is about 700 billion won based on total enterprise value (EV). Back-calculating this suggests EV/EBITDA of about 24 to 26 times. Considering that Praxis Capital invested about 100 billion won in 2021 to secure roughly a 60% equity stake, the expected enterprise value has risen significantly.
The sell-side's high valuation of Beyond Music appears to reflect the quality of its music portfolio, stable cash flow, and potential growth via catalog expansion. In particular, if expansion potential beyond simple copyright revenue—through combinations with content and platforms—comes to the fore, there could be additional room for value-up. Based on anticipated global demand expansion, Beyond Music has secured music IP for more than 35,000 tracks.