이 기사는 2021년 03월 25일 07:45 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.

South Korean e-commerce grocer Market Kurly will select underwriters to lead its planned initial public offering (IPO) after it has decided to list in New York.

Market Kurly recently invited multiple foreign brokerage firms to pitch for roles in its listing, industry sources said on Tuesday. They made presentations on their listing strategies and estimated enterprise value.

Citigroup Global Markets Securities, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan and Credit Suisse participated in the presentation. They reportedly highlighted advantages that Market Curly would get through its listing in the U.S.

Market Kurly plans to make a final decision as early as this week. It recently terminated the contract with Samsung Securities, which had helped the company prepare for its IPO since 2018.

A successful U.S. public market debut of its bigger rival, Coupang, is believed to have an impact on the company’s decision on the listing venue. Coupang’s market capitalization hit $88 billion after its listing. This may have given confidence to Sophie Kim, chief executive of Market Kurly.

Market insiders said brokerage firms that worked on the Coupang deal could be hired by Market Kurly. The company is expected to assess whether the brokerage firms could fully utilize their know-hows from the Coupang listing in the Market Kurly IPO.

“Ten brokerage firms worked on the Coupang’s listing in New York and most of them were foreign firms operating in the domestic market,” said an industry source. “They are likely to be in more favorable conditions, unless a conflict of interest arises.”

Founded in December 2014, Market Kurly is known for its overnight grocery delivery services. It looks to continue to invest in logistics infrastructure to expand its service areas.

Sophie Kim is the largest shareholder with some 10% stake. Global investment firms Hillhouse Capital, Sequoia Capital China, DST Global and Aspex Management together hold more than 50%. Market Kurly raised around 200 billion won at a post-money valuation of around 1 trillion won in April 2020. (Reporting by Chul Kang)