Domestic fintech companies are accelerating initial public offering (IPO) plans, citing growth potential and technological capabilities. From firms that have delivered results in overseas markets to data-driven platform companies, a steady stream of listing candidates is emerging. The previously quiet fintech industry is again drawing market attention.
On March 13, the industry said K Bank’s successful entry to the KOSPI after a third attempt is warming up South Korea’s fintech IPO market.
With foreign remittance platform Hanpass set to list on the KOSDAQ, Viva Republica, which operates Toss, mydata company BankSalad, small-business data platform Korea Credit Data and insurance-and-loan fintech HabitFactory are being mentioned as major next listing candidates.
The company drawing the most attention is Viva Republica, which operates Toss. Toss recently asked the Financial Supervisory Service about guidelines related to the designated auditor system and has entered listing preparations. Under the system, a company preparing for a listing is assigned an external auditor by the Financial Supervisory Service to ensure accounting transparency.
The industry sees Toss as considering a dual listing approach in which it lists first on a U.S. exchange and then relists on a domestic exchange. Some also expect it could list on a U.S. exchange as early as the end of this year and then pursue a domestic listing in 2028.
Mydata company BankSalad is also pursuing a listing. BankSalad has selected Mirae Asset Securities as its IPO underwriter and is conducting due diligence. It is known to be targeting a KOSDAQ listing in the second half. It returned to profitability in the first half of last year, and sales from its insurance diagnostic service using mydata and artificial intelligence (AI) rose more than 230 percent, in an assessment that it has proven its growth potential.
Fintech companies that have delivered results in overseas markets are also speeding up IPO preparations. HabitFactory, which operates the insurance comparison and recommendation platform Signal Planner, selected Samsung Securities and KB Securities as joint lead managers and began listing preparations.
HabitFactory built an AI-based insurance consulting, design and recommendation system that boosted planner productivity by more than 10 times compared with the industry average. It has also entered the U.S. mortgage market and operates a mortgage-specialist bank in 5 states including California, Texas, Georgia, Nevada and Washington. It is targeting 2027 for the listing.
Fintech startup Affinity is also pursuing a listing. Affinity grew rapidly by operating the AI-based financial platform True Balance, centered on the Indian market. Using an alternative credit scoring system based on non-financial smartphone data, it brokers financial products for India’s middle class who have difficulty accessing banking services.
Revenue rose from 9.1 billion won in 2020 to about 165 billion won last year, and operating profit was tallied at about 30 billion won. Cumulative brokerage volume for financial products surpassed 2.6 trillion won.
Korea Credit Data, which operates small-business management platform Cashnote, is also known to be preparing an IPO. Korea Credit Data provides bookkeeping management, sales analysis, payments and financial services to 1,700,000 business sites nationwide. It recorded its first monthly operating profit in December last year, showing a trend of improved profitability.
In the fintech industry, profitability and technological strength are cited as key conditions for successful listings. It also cites security and stronger system stability as important tasks after a series of incidents, including system and access errors, in the fintech industry recently.
An industry official said, “If companies that have proven both performance and technological capabilities succeed in listing, it will also have a positive impact on South Korea’s fintech industry.”
