Lotte plans IPO in London and Seoul

Gavin Lipsith

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The owner of duty-free retailer Hotel Lotte's IPO will be the largest ever for a South Korean company, fetching up to $3.75bn

South Korean retail conglomerate Lotte Shopping is planning a dual-market float in London and Seoul according to reports in the financial press. The company, which owns the Hotel Lotte duty-free operation at Incheon International airport and downtown in Seoul, stated in its initial public offering plan that it aims to sell shares worth W3.68 trillion ($3.75bn).

The move will be the largest ever IPO by a South Korean company, although Lotte was founded in Japan before being taken over by Korean shareholders, and the retailer aims to make up to W2.95 trillion ($3bn) on the London market by selling 6.86m shares. It will sell a further 1.71m shares to local investors. The shares will be priced on January 27 and will begin trading on both markets on February 9, after being offered to employees and institutional investors on February 1 and to retail investors on February 2-3.

Lotte's duty-free sales totalled over W690bn ($660m) in 2003, with 72% of the sales value made through downtown outlets.