The company expects investors to be more receptive to an IPO once the holidays are over
[HONG KONG] Klook Technology plans to list in the US early next year, according to people familiar with the matter, as the online travel platform waits for the market to turn more favourable.
Klook had previously considered listing in New York by the end of 2025, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is not public. It now expects investors to be more receptive to an initial public offering once the holidays are over and appetite for new listings picks up, the people said.
Weak debuts by peers such as Navan – down 38 per cent since listing a little over a month ago – have also encouraged Klook to hold off until next year, the people said. Deliberations are ongoing and plans may change, they added.
A representative for Klook declined to comment.
The company, which has backers including Goldman Sachs Group and SoftBank Group, had filed for the IPO in New York on Nov 10 as the US government shutdown neared an end. Around that time, a diplomatic spat erupted between China and Japan, hurting tourism between the countries.
Klook, which was founded in Hong Kong in 2014, competes with the likes of Booking.com, Expedia Group and Trip.com Group. It raised US$100 million in February in a round led by London-based Vitruvian Partners, bringing total fundraising to more than US$1 billion.
Klook may seek to raise US$300 million to US$500 million in the IPO, people familiar with the plan have said. The largest US IPO by an Asia-Pacific firm this year – excluding blank-cheque companies – was tea chain Chagee Holdings, which raised about US$473 million in April, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Klook intends to use the proceeds on acquisitions, investments, working capital and operating expenses, it said in its filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission last month.
Goldman, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley are leading the IPO. Klook is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol KLK. BLOOMBERG
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