'Brokerage VIP' SK Group... Big IPO Market Opens Next Year

The scene of SK Innovation's extraordinary general meeting held on the 16th at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul. SK Innovation held the extraordinary general meeting on this day and resolved the physical division plan for the battery and oil exploration & production (E&P) businesses. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] SK Group has been steadily conducting affiliate listings in recent years to raise funds in the stock market. Starting with SK Biopharm last year, this year it has introduced blue-chip stocks such as SK Bioscience, SK IET, and SK REITs to the market. The securities industry expects the rush of SK Group affiliate listings to accelerate next year as well.

◇Who will be the next to take over the baton for SK Group's Initial Public Offerings (IPO)?

Currently, the industry highly anticipates the possibility of listings for SK E&S and SK Siltron. SK E&S, an LNG power generation company affiliated with SK Group, is mentioned as the next IPO candidate due to its aggressive investments and dividends. If listed, SK E&S can attract external funds, and SK, which holds 90% of SK E&S's shares, can reinvest the cash secured from some existing share sales into its business. SK Siltron is also consistently mentioned as a potential IPO candidate. SK Siltron, which changed its name after SK Group acquired LG Siltron in 2017, is currently the only specialized silicon wafer manufacturing company in South Korea. SK Battery (tentative name), a spin-off of SK Innovation's battery business, is also expected to proceed with listing preparations.

◇Subsidiary listing candidates line up after SK Telecom's spin-off

After the shareholders' meeting concludes on the 12th of next month, on November 1, SK Telecom will be split into the existing operating company SK Telecom and the newly established investment company SK Square. SK Telecom announced that it will seek proper valuation of its undervalued corporate value through subsidiary listings. SK Telecom had revealed plans for subsidiary listings even before the spin-off. The plan is to secure sufficient funds necessary for business and to enhance corporate value through subsidiary listings. SK Square's targets include companies with high future growth potential such as ADT Caps, One Store, 11st, Content Wave, and T Map Mobility. A financial investment industry official said, "Next year, a flood of listed companies from SK Group is expected, and the securities industry is paying great attention and preparing accordingly."