WEBTOON Entertainment, a worldwide platform that hosts comics and cartoons, is gearing up for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the United States. According to the platform, it will offer 15 million shares at the price of $18 to $21 per share.
Under these IPO terms, Webtoon is hoping to raise anywhere from $270 million to $315 million and is valuating itself at $2.67 billion.
According to a report by Reuters, there are certain funds and companies under the management of asset manager BlackRock that have already shown interest in purchasing $50 million in WEBTOON’s shares. Additionally, South Korean internet conglomerate NAVER, WEBTOON’s parent company, also plans to acquire $50 million worth of shares in a concurrent private placement.
WEBTOON will be listed on the Nasdaq under the symbol WBTN. The list of its underwriters for the offering includes Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and J.P. Morgan.
Since its launch in 2004, WEBTOON has seen significant expansion in a number of markets across Asia, Europe, and North America. It features content from 24 million creators and has 85.6 million monthly active users. The platform’s revenue at the end of the 12-month period, concluding with March 31, 2024, came at $1.3 billion.