GIC-Backed Line Man Wongnai Said to Gear Up for $300 Million IPO

Elffie Chew and Anuchit Nguyen, Bloomberg News

(Bloomberg) -- Line Man Wongnai, an on-demand delivery app in Thailand, has started preparations for an initial public offering in Bangkok that could raise around $300 million, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The startup is working with local advisers including Kasikorn Securities Pcl and Kiatnakin Phatra Securities Pcl on the potential first-time share sale, the people said. The company, backed by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte, is also interviewing international banks to help arrange the offering, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the process is private. A listing could happen as soon as next year, they said.

Deliberations are ongoing and details of the IPO including size and timeline could still change, the people said.

Line Man Wongnai is aiming for an IPO as early as 2025, its representative said in response to Bloomberg News query on Wednesday, declining to comment further on other details. A representative for Phatra Securities declined to comment, while a representative for Kasikorn Securities didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Line Man Wongnai’s potential offering comes after two of Thailand’s biggest IPO candidates called off their plans. Siam Cement Pcl scrapped the proposed first-time share sale of its chemical unit that could have raised as much as $3 billion. Big C Retail Corp., a supermarket chain operator controlled by Thailand’s richest person, also postponed its $1 billion listing plans. Thailand has only hosted about $744 million worth of IPOs so far this year, down from $2.3 billion in the same period in 2022, data compiled by Bloomberg shows.

Line Man Wongnai traces its roots to 2010 when four graduates from Chulalongkorn University’s engineering faculty founded Wongnai, an online restaurant review database, its website shows. In 2020, Wongnai merged with Line Man, Line Corp.’s delivery service in Thailand, and created Line Man Wongnai.

The startup competes with Grab Holdings Ltd. and SCB X Pcl’s Robinhood app on food delivery services. It also offers business solutions for shops and restaurants.

The company last year raised $265 million in a series B funding round led by GIC and Line, propelling its valuation to more than $1 billion. It also counts BRV Capital, PTT Oil & Retail Business Pcl, Bualuang Ventures and Taiwan Mobile Co. among its backers. Line Man Wongnai this year acquired FoodStory, another Thai startup that specializes in restaurant point-of-sale systems.

Line Man Wongnai aims to achieve a valuation of over $10 billion, while it will seek to list on Thailand’s stock exchange, Yod Chinsupakul, co-founder and chief executive officer of Line Man Wongnai, told the Bangkok Post last year. The report didn’t have details on the IPO.

(Updates Line Man Wongnai’s comment in fourth paragraph and adds Thai IPO data in fifth paragraph.)