[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Sangjin] Naver Webtoon has officially commenced the process for listing on the U.S. NASDAQ. On May 31st (local time), Naver Webtoon submitted a Securities Registration Statement (S-1) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), applying for an Initial Public Offering (IPO).
In its filing, Naver Webtoon disclosed its company's financial performance and policies. According to the registration statement, Naver Webtoon's net profit for the first quarter of this year was $6.2 million, with earnings per share (EPS) of $1.73. Revenue grew from $310.3 million in the same period last year to $326.7 million. Total revenue for last year was $1.28 billion, with a net loss of $145 million.
Despite the recent controversies surrounding Naver's Line-Yahoo issue, Naver Webtoon stated that control over Naver Webtoon would continue to be maintained by Naver. Naver and Line-Yahoo are shareholders of Webtoon Entertainment, which holds a 70% stake in Line Digital Frontier, responsible for overseeing operations in Japan.
According to Bloomberg in February, the target valuation is between $3 billion and $4 billion, with the IPO expected to raise up to $500 million.
Currently, Naver Webtoon has over 24 million creators and 170 million monthly active users (MAU) in more than 150 countries.
Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan, and Evercore ISI are leading the IPO. The ticker symbol upon NASDAQ listing is expected to be "WBTN".
AlphaBIZ Kim SangJin(letyou@alphabiz.co.kr)
