South Korea’s KakaoBank drops to record

Bloomberg

Shares of KakaoBank Corp., a South Korean online-only lender, tumbled 8.2% to a record low after one of its key shareholders raised $320 million in a block trade.
Kookmin Bank offered about 14.8 million shares in a club deal, according to terms of the deal obtained by Bloomberg News. The lender sold shares at 28,704 won each, a discount of 8% from the closing price.
KakaoBank shares finished at 28,650 won in Seoul. Kookmin Bank will hold a 4.9% stake after the block sale, according to terms, down from an 8% stake that had made it the third-largest shareholder.
“Kookmin Bank probably wanted to protect its capital from worsening as its other comprehensive income shrank due to KakaoBank’s share price decline,” said Choi Chunguk, an analyst at Hana Financial Investment. “If the stock price of KakaoBank drops further, Kookmin Bank’s capital will diminish further.”
The lender went public at a high valuation amid a flurry of initial public offerings in Seoul last year that led to increased scrutiny by regulators.
KakaoBank shares lost more than 51% in 2022, over three times the drop in the Kospi Index. The affiliate of Kakao Corp. made its stock market debut about a year ago, with shares initially surging. But they slumped soon after that, falling about 69% from their peak in August 2021.

It was the second-largest IPO in the city in 2021, a year that marked a record $18 billion tally in proceeds in the country.
KakaoBank was formed in 2016 after the Korean government offered online-banking permits for the first time in 2015. Its users grew quickly as the online bank has benefited from its parent messenger service. Kakao Corp. shares are down about 32% this year.