South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang soars in market debut, begins trading at $63.50 on the NYSE

Shares of South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang soared 70% in its market debut Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange, making it the largest IPO so far this year in the United States.

The company’s stock began trading at $59.60 apiece, giving Coupang a market cap of $102.2 billion. The company had priced its shares at $35 apiece, above its target range of $32 to $34 each.

Founded in 2010 by Korean-American billionaire Bom Kim, Coupang (pronounced “coo-pong”) made a name for itself through its guaranteed same-day or next-day delivery service. Often compared to Amazon or Alibaba, Coupang has more than 100 fulfillment and logistics centers in more than 30 cities. The company, which ranked No. 2 on the 2020 CNBC Disruptor 50 list, also employs 15,000 drivers in South Korea for its deliveries.

The company was last valued in the private market at $9 billion in a 2018 funding round, according to PitchBook.

Coupang is hitting the market after the Covid-19 pandemic caused millions of consumers to remain home, leading to an e-commerce boom. Coupang nearly doubled its revenue to $12 billion last year, according to its filing to go public. Still, the company reported a net loss of about $475 million in 2020.

Thursday’s market debut could mark another successful venture for SoftBank, whose $100 billion Vision Fund owns more than 35% of Coupang. The firm has been recovering from a series of missteps and announced last month it recorded an $8 billion profit at its Vision Fund unit in its third quarter. Coupang also counts Sequoia Capital and BlackRock among its investors.

Goldman Sachs, Allen & Co and JPMorgan were among the lead underwriters for the offering. The stock trades under the ticker symbol “CPNG.”

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