이 기사는 2022년 03월 04일 08:02 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.

Early investors in Kakao Mobility, including US-based private equity firm TPG, seek to sell part of their stakes ahead of a planned public listing as interest continues in buying shares in the South Korean taxi-hailing firm.

TPG and other investors are considering selling 100 billion won ($83 million) worth of shares in Kakao Mobility to investment firms that have continued to express interest in purchasing shares from them, industry sources said.

The price tag is expected to be higher than the company’s valuation of 5 trillion won in its latest fundraising at the end of last year.

In 2017, a consortium comprising TPG, Korea Investment & Securities and Orix invested 500 billion won in Kakao Mobility, the mobility arm of messaging app giant Kakao Corp.

The company’s planned initial public offering has been delayed due to growing criticism over aggressive expansion of Kakao affiliates. Korea Exchange’s tightened scrutiny of IPO candidates’ valuations is another reason that Kakao Mobility is reviewing its IPO timeline.

The share sale at a higher valuation would help avoid the potential controversy of the company being too expensive. It would also help reduce an overhang on the company’s shares after the IPO.

Kakao Mobility holds a dominant position in South Korea’s taxi-hailing market, with a fleet of over 16,000 affiliated taxis as of the end of 2021, the largest in the country.

Kakao Mobility is stepping up to expand its business beyond tax-hailing to increase the company’s value. It offers van-hailing service Kakao T Venti and shuttle bus service for enterprise users. Kakao T Flight was launched last year, through which users can book and pay for air tickets. The company also rolled out quick motorbike delivery service last June.

The company’s fast growth has helped attract investments. Kakao mobility raised 220 billion won from Carlyle Group in February last year and 56.5 billion won from Google in the following month. In June, the TPG consortium and Carlyle additionally invested 130.7 billion won and 9.2 billion won in the company, respectively.

LG and GS Energy put 100 billion won and 30 billion won, respectively, into Kakao Mobility. In December last year, GS Retail also invested 65 billion won in a deal that valued the company at 5 trillion won.

Kakao Mobility plans to continue to focus on growing new businesses and preparing for its IPO. (Reporting by Se-hun Jo)