Hyundai heading to India with mother of all IPOs this Diwali?

Nearly three decades after Hyundai made its India debut, the South Korean auto company is reportedly mulling to list in the country.

The IPO could be India's largest if it goes through, according to an ET report. LIC holds the record for the largest IPO with an issue size of ₹21,000 crore.

Most IPO debuts so far this year have been on exchanges in Asia Pacific, with India’s equity market hosting more listings than other regional peers.

Asia equity capital market bankers expect India to remain among the region’s most active markets throughout this year. The ET report says several investment banks were in Seol last week to firm up the listing plan for India's second-largest passenger vehicle seller, after Maruti Suzuki. 

Bankers reportedly valued the company at $22-28 billion. Hyundai Motor Co, which is listed in South Korea with a market cap of $39 billion, is eyeing a Diwali listing. 

The India listing would be reportedly part of South Korea's 'value-up' programme. 

Taking a cue from Japan’s corporate reforms that helped fuel its stock rally, Korean financial regulators are considering measures to publicly “name and shame” companies that fail to adopt improvement measures. 

They’re also considering an indicator that measures companies’ reform efforts.  Hyundai set a 4% to 5% growth target for sales for 2024. It plans total investment this year of 12.4 trillion won, including 5.6 trillion won in capital expenditure and 4.9 trillion won for research and development.