Chaevi IPO Book-Building: 70% of Foreign Institutions Bid at Top of Range, 62% of Domestic at Bottom

Chaevi, South Korea's No. 1 EV fast-charging infrastructure operator (CPO), has priced its IPO at KRW 12,300 — the bottom of its indicative range. Yet analysts caution against writing this off as a straightforward deal failure. A closer look at the institutional order book reveals a striking divergence: domestic and foreign investors were effectively on opposite sides of the trade.

According to IB industry sources on the 20th, Chaevi's book-building period ran from the 10th to the 16th, attracting 751 institutional participants and recording a subscription competition ratio of 55.23x. The final offer price was set at KRW 12,300, the floor of the indicative range (KRW 12,300–15,300), and the number of shares offered was trimmed 10% from 10 million to 9 million shares. Total gross proceeds stand at KRW 110.7 billion, implying a post-listing market capitalization of approximately KRW 575.5 billion.

On the surface, the numbers look soft. But the composition of the order book tells a different story. Approximately 70% of foreign institutional investors submitted bids at or above the top of the range, while roughly 62% of domestic institutions came in at or below the floor. On a volume-weighted basis, approximately 38% of total demand was concentrated at the upper end of the range.

A spokesperson for Samsung Securities, the lead managing underwriter, explained: "Domestic institutions were heavily influenced by concerns over the prolonged EV demand slowdown — the so-called 'chasm' — over the past three years. Foreign institutions, by contrast, showed strong conviction in the winner-takes-all market structure and the compounding revenue model driven by continued EV adoption."

Supply Down 95%, Demand Up 2.2x — A Structure Shaped by Big Players Exiting

Foreign institutional conviction appears rooted in the supply-side dynamics. According to Chaevi, the number of newly installed domestic fast chargers plunged 95% year-over-year — a direct consequence of major conglomerates including LG, SK, Hanwha, Lotte, POSCO, and KT exiting the EV charging business between 2024 and 2025.

Demand, meanwhile, is trending in the opposite direction. EVs accounted for 25% of new domestic vehicle sales in March, representing a 2.2x increase versus the same month last year. Government fast-charger subsidy budgets are also going largely unspent due to the absence of new market entrants.

Chaevi currently manages over 10,000 fast-charging stalls, including approximately 6,000 company-operated stalls and units supplied and operated under government contracts. The company reaches breakeven at an average daily utilization rate of 2.8 sessions per stall — and while its annual target for 2026 was set at 2.0 sessions, that figure was already surpassed in Q1 2026. The combination of competitor exits and the expiration of the mandatory slow-charger installation moratorium has driven utilization ahead of schedule.

Tesla Clause Listing — KRW 29.6B Operating Loss, Put-Back Option Included

The reasons behind domestic institutions' reluctance are equally clear. Chaevi is listing under the pre-profit exemption (the so-called "Tesla Clause"), making it a loss-making issuer. Full-year 2024 consolidated revenue came in at KRW 101.7 billion, with an operating loss of KRW 29.6 billion. Management's profitability roadmap targets EBITDA breakeven in Q4 2026 and operating profit breakeven in 2027.

Investor sentiment in the 2026 IPO market has also been deeply negative. The majority of newly listed stocks on the KOSDAQ and KOSPI this year have traded below their offer prices from day one, with Tesla Clause listings such as Day1 Company (-44%) and IGNet (-39%) serving as cautionary examples of sharp post-listing declines.

In response, Chaevi has incorporated a put-back option into the deal structure. Under the arrangement, if the share price falls below the offer price within a specified post-listing window, the lead underwriters are obligated to repurchase shares at approximately 90% of the offer price (roughly KRW 11,070). The lead underwriters are KB Securities and Samsung Securities, with Daeshin Securities and Hana Securities serving as co-managers.

Chaevi CEO Choi Young-hoon commented: "We set an investor-friendly offer price that reflects current market conditions. Post-listing, we will accelerate the build-out of core infrastructure and the expansion of our global business, and let our financial performance speak to the company's value."

Day-One Retail Subscription at 4x — 23.18% Float a Key Overhang

The temperature on the first day of the retail subscription period, which opened April 20, was lukewarm. As of the morning of the 20th, the aggregate competition ratio stood at 4.16x at KB Securities and 4.41x at Samsung Securities — well below the double-digit ratios seen on day one of recent high-demand IPOs.

The minimum subscription lot is 10 shares (requiring a deposit of KRW 61,500), and institutional lock-up commitment applications came in at just 6.49%. Post-listing freely tradeable shares total 10,846,030 shares, representing 23.18% of total shares outstanding — a level that could weigh on early supply-demand dynamics.

The Key Variable: Opening Price on Listing Day, April 29

The retail subscription window closes on the 21st, with Chaevi's KOSDAQ debut scheduled for April 29. The prevailing view in the IPO market is that the key question is which narrative wins out in early trading — domestic institutions' framing of Chaevi as a loss-making market leader navigating an EV demand trough, or the foreign institutional view of a structural supply shortage beneficiary.

Three key checkpoints will determine the investment thesis: ▲ Whether Chaevi delivers on its Q4 2026 EBITDA breakeven target ▲ Whether average daily utilization per stall sustainably exceeds 2.8 sessions ▲ The pace at which the 23.18% post-listing float enters the market.