Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan to stay out of Kakao Bank IPO

A Kakao Bank user makes a transaction using his mobile phone. / Courtesy of Kakao Bank

By Park Jae-hyuk

Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan are unlikely to bid to become underwriters for Kakao Bank's planned initial public offering (IPO) because of possible conflicts of interest, according to sources, Friday.

The two U.S. investment banks are underwriters for the listing of KakaoPay, Kakao's mobile payment services provider. Because Kakao Bank and KakaoPay are fintech firms, the investment banks could take measures that favor one side if they were selected as underwriters for both subsidiaries.

Kakao Bank is expected to announce the underwriters for its IPO within next week at the earliest, taking into account the possible conflicts of interest.

The underwriters will make handsome profits, so major foreign investment banks have also paid attention to the planned IPO.

On a related note, CEOs of major local securities firms gathered at Kakao Bank headquarters in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, Friday, to convince the nation's leading internet-only bank to select their companies as underwriters.

NH Investment & Securities CEO Chung Young-chae, Samsung Securities CEO Chang Seok-hoon and KB Securities CEO Kim Sung-hyun reportedly participated in the tender presentation. Mirae Asset Daewoo also explained its strategies for the bank's successful IPO, but Vice Chairman Choi Hyun-man did not attend.

With the aim of going public during the second half of next year, the Kakao subsidiary recently attracted huge investments from foreign private equity firms ― TPG Capital and Anchor Equity Partners. The bank's valuation is estimated at up to 20 trillion won ($18 billion), much higher than domestic banking groups.

Both KB Securities and Samsung Securities are underwriters for the KakaoPay IPO. NH Investment & Securities is a major shareholder in K bank, a rival of Kakao Bank. NH held a 10 percent stake in K bank as of the end of last year.

Mirae Asset Daewoo has formed close ties with Naver, a Kakao rival. Mirae Asset Daewoo holds a stake in Naver, which is also a major shareholder in the former with a 7.34 percent stake.