Cleary Gottlieb represented LOTTE REIT Co. Ltd. (LOTTE REIT) and LOTTE Shopping Co. Ltd. (LOTTE Shopping) in LOTTE REIT’s KRW 430 billion ($359 billion) initial public offering, the largest IPO ever by a Korean real estate investment trust company.
HSBC, Korea Investment & Securities, and Nomura were joint bookrunners for the international tranche of the offering. The IPO priced at the high end of the expected price range on October 7, 2019, and the common shares began trading on the KRX KOSPI Market of the Korea Exchange on October 30, 2019.
LOTTE REIT is sponsored by LOTTE Shopping, which is Korea’s largest retailer by revenue. Both LOTTE REIT and LOTTE Shopping are member companies of the LOTTE Group, which is the fifth-largest business group in Korea. LOTTE REIT’s asset portfolio consists of various retail stores strategically located across Korea, all of which are leased and operated by LOTTE Shopping.