Davis Polk & Wardwell advised Webzen Inc. on its $97 million SEC-registered initial public offering of 8,700,000 ADSs representing one-tenth of a common share. The shares are listed on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol “WZEN”. The offering is the first IPO listing of ADSs since 2000 from a Korean issuer. Based in Seoul, Korea, Webzen is a leading developer and distributor of online games in Korea and is also listed on the KOSDAQ.
J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. acted as sole lead manager of the offering with Daiwa Securities SMBC Hong Kong Limited and ING Bank N.V. acting as co-lead managers.
The Davis Polk corporate team included partner Eugene C. Gregor of the Tokyo office and associates Hyun S. Kim and Seong Eun Kim of the Hong Kong office. Partner John D. Paton of the London office and associate Amy B. Heller of the New York office provided tax advice. Partner Nora M. Jordan and associates Kelly Ann Finley and Jessica A. Davis of the New York office provided advice on the Investment Company Act of 1940.
