Shares of South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang surged 40% 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 $63.50 apiece. Shares closed at $49.25, giving the company a market cap of $84.47 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.”
