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Shares in K-pop group BTS' management label Big Hit drop after debut

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Joyce Lee, Reuters

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2020/reuters/10/15/20201015-bighit.jpg"/><figcaption>An employee walks past a electronic board showing an information of Big Hit Entertainment&#x27;s initial public offering ceremony at the Korea Exchange in Seoul, South Korea, October 15, 2020. Kim Hong-Ji, Reuters</figcaption></figure></div>SEOUL - Shares in Big Hit Entertainment defied the pre-listing hype to dip on their first day of trade on Thursday, giving the management label of South Korean superstar K-pop group BTS a market valuation of 8.7 trillion won ($7.61 billion).Big Hit, which relies heavily on the boy band for revenue, opened at 270,000 won - <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/10/15/20/bts-agency-shares-double-on-stock-market-debut">double</a> its initial public offering (IPO) price - and surged by as much as 30 percent in early trade before dropping back to just under the list price.Interest in South Korea&#x27;s third largest IPO of the year was high, with almost half of Big Hit&#x27;s 10 million tradable shares changing hands on Thursday morning amid a weaker wider market , according to the Korea Exchange website.Analysts say the company has proved itself online savvy, using Youtube and social media for market infiltration since in-person performances were cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.But there are some concerns about Big Hit&#x27;s reliance on its star artists. The Billboard Chart-topping BTS, which has a huge global following, accounted for 87.7 percent of the label&#x27;s revenue in the first half of 2020, according to a regulatory filing.It&#x27;s a scenario common among South Korean entertainment companies and one investors are familiar with, but it makes revenue especially vulnerable to any disruptions in output from key talent.&quot;The industry is booming, but it&#x27;s also very cyclical, and undergoes a lot of fluctuations,&quot; said Kim Hyun-yong, analyst at Hyundai Motor Securities, citing potential obstacles such as the country&#x27;s mandatory military service.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/10/15/20/bts-fans-give-4-billion-ipo-a-global-army-to-go-with-it">BTS’ fans give $4 billion IPO a global army to go with it</a></li></ul>That service is looming for BTS, with the eldest member of the band currently required to sign up by the end of next year and the remaining 6 members over the following 5 years.Calls have been mounting for the band to be granted an exemption from or postponement of the two-year commitment, with some lawmakers and fans arguing they are doing plenty for their country without wearing a soldier&#x27;s uniform.Earlier this week, BTS faced a barrage of criticism in China after the band&#x27;s lead member made remarks about the 1950-53 Korean War pitting the United States and South Korea against China and North Korea. BTS-related social media posts relating to big-name brands, including Samsung, FILA and Hyundair, subsequently disappeared from Chinese e-commerce platforms.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/overseas/10/12/20/big-brand-bts-promotions-disappear-as-band-sparks-uproar-in-china">Big-brand BTS promotions disappear as band sparks uproar in China</a></li></ul>Thursday&#x27;s float made the band members instant multimillionaires, with each granted shares worth 18.5 billion won ($16 million) at the debut price, but BTS&#x27; official Twitter account did not reference the listing, focusing instead on the group&#x27;s win at the coinciding U.S. Billboard Music Awards for Top Social Artist.<div>NEW ARTISTS?</div>Analysts said BTS&#x27; successful online concerts have partly made up for performances cancelled due to COVID-19. Additionally, Big Hit&#x27;s unprecedented level of control over its revenue streams via its Weverse fandom platform that distributes BTS content and sells merchandise, differentiate the label.&quot;Although offline concerts are impossible for the time being, Big Hit&#x27;s results in the first half of this year show that the content and merchandise made profits; it was hardly affected on-year,&quot; said KTB Investment &amp; Securities analyst Nam Hyo-ji.Big Hit founder and co-CEO Bang Si-hyuk said the company planned to create &quot;new value chains.&quot;&quot;We will continue to research, challenge, discover innovative business models, and apply them to continue to grow in the global market,&quot; he said at the listing ceremony.The listing added to heightened IPO activity in South Korea, with volumes rising 51 percent to $2.9 billion so far this year, compared with the same period last year, according to Refinitiv data.The pipeline looks solid after government stimulus to boost the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic flooded markets with cash, analysts said. Online game developer Krafton, and chat app operator Kakao&#x27;s mobile banking unit KakaoBank have both begun preliminary processes for listing.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/10/02/20/watch-enrique-gil-channels-bts-in-dance-cover-of-dynamite">WATCH: Enrique Gil channels BTS in dance cover of &#x27;Dynamite&#x27;</a></li></ul>

Shares in Big Hit Entertainment defied the pre-listing hype to dip on their first day of trade on Thursday, giving the management label of South Korean superstar K-pop group BTS a market valuation of 8.7 trillion won ($7.61 billion).

Shares in Big Hit Entertainment defied the pre-listing hype to dip on their first day of trade on Thursday, giving the management label of South Korean superstar K-pop group BTS a market valuation of 8.7 trillion won ($7.61 billion).

Shares in K-pop group BTS' management label Big Hit drop after debut

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Shares in K-pop group BTS' management label Big Hit drop after debut

Joyce Lee,

Reuters

Published Oct 15, 2020 04:05 PM PHT

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BTS

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