South Korea’s Socar readies 2022 IPO

South Korean car-sharing startup Socar is pumping itself up for the launch of its IPO on the South Korea stock exchange (KRX) in the first semester of 2022.

Besides investing in autonomous driving startup RideFlux in 2018, the company acquired local online parking platform Modu Company and electric bike rental platform Elecle at year-end 2021 and other acquisitions are in the works, according to Socar CEO Jaewook Park.

Meanwhile, Socar is planning to launch an app in 2022 which will provide a wide range of mobility services such as car and e-bike sharing, as well as parking lot search, ride hailing, and train reservation. And by 2030, to strengthen its self-driving car business, it is seeking to create a zero-emission fleet which includes electric or hydrogen-powered cars.

Valued at some US$2.5 billion, according to a TechCrunch report, among its investors are SK Holdings, Bain Capital, Premier Partners, SoftBank Ventures Asia, Altos Ventures, KB Investment, Stonebridge Ventures, LB Private Equity, and SG Private Equity.