Japanese online bank to mark Tokyo’s second-biggest IPO ever, raising $1bn

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RIYADH: Japan’s biggest initial public offering since tech giant SoftBank will look to revive the nation’s listings market, relatively lacklustre in recent months.

The offering of SBI Sumishin Net Bank Ltd. — an online Japanese bank — will test investor appetite as it seeks to raise more than $1 billion, Bloomberg reported.

Shares of the bank are expected to debut on the stock market on March 24.

Back in 2018, Tokyo witnessed its biggest-ever IPO of SoftBank, raising $21 billion and yielding strong demand from investors.

With IPO activity slowing down amid interest rate hikes and geopolitical tensions, this is a sensitive time to go public on Tokyo’s stock exchange.

Only five public offerings have been priced in the market’s 2022 pipeline so far, with proceeds totaling $36 million, according to Bloomberg.

This is down significantly from seven deals that generated $252 million in the same period a year earlier.