Ecopro Materials Confirms IPO Price at 36,200 KRW... Market Capitalization of 2.5 Trillion KRW (Comprehensive)

EcoPro Materials announced on the 7th that it has finalized the public offering price at 36,200 KRW following a demand forecast conducted over five days from October 30 to November 3 targeting domestic and international institutional investors. This price is at the lowest end of the expected range of 36,200 to 44,000 KRW.

This demand forecast was conducted based on actual demand in accordance with institutional improvements. A total of 1,141 domestic and international institutions participated, applying for a total of 109,258,000 shares. The simple competition rate was 17.2 to 1, with the public offering amount expected to be approximately 419.2 billion KRW, and the market capitalization after listing is projected to be around 2.5 trillion KRW.

Looking at the distribution of application prices in the demand forecast, 38.2% of the quantity hoped to be acquired at 36,200 KRW or below. The volume that proposed prices at or above the upper limit of the public offering price range of 36,200 to 44,000 KRW was 45.1%. The majority of institutions did not commit to a lock-up period.

A representative from Mirae Asset Securities said, "Most institutional investors positively evaluated EcoPro Materials' technology leadership and future growth potential in the global battery cathode material market," adding, "There was a strong response from overseas, with significant positive participation from large institutional investors in places like Hong Kong and Singapore."

The representative explained, "Concerns over economic growth uncertainties and the possibility of prolonged high interest rates caused instability in the stock market, making a normal demand forecast difficult," and added, "Unlike overseas, some polarization was observed among domestic institutional investors." He further stated, "Large orders from high-quality domestic and international institutions applied within the public offering price band, and more than 80% of the order quantity was received at or above the finalized public offering price, which was taken into account when deciding the offering price."

Founded in 2017, EcoPro Materials is the only domestic company mass-producing precursors, a core material for secondary batteries. It mainly produces high-nickel precursors of the highest quality used in electric vehicles (EVs) and Non-IT devices. The company has also succeeded in developing metal refining and production technologies for key raw materials such as nickel and cobalt, securing global competitiveness.

EcoPro Materials plans to use the funds raised through this listing for additional factory and facility investments as well as raw material purchases. With the growth of the eco-friendly battery market, precursor demand is expected to continue growing, and the company intends to continue investing to expand production capacity.

Kim Byung-hoon, CEO of EcoPro Materials, expressed, "I sincerely thank the investors who participated in the demand forecast trusting EcoPro Materials' technology and growth potential," emphasizing, "With this listing as a milestone, we will maintain technological superiority through continuous research and development (R&D) and production capacity investments, and continue to lead the battery cathode material market by strengthening cost competitiveness based on the RMP process."

EcoPro Materials is scheduled to conduct subscription on the 8th and 9th and list on the Korea Exchange on the 17th of the same month. The lead underwriter for the listing is Mirae Asset Securities, with NH Investment & Securities as the joint underwriter.

Meanwhile, financial investors (FIs) and strategic investors have a lock-up period of six months, while major shareholders and some related parties have a lock-up period of 30 months.