Investment bankers have been waiting for Woori for a long time. The Korean financial holding company which is 80% government-owned was originally expected to launch a $1 billion ADR back in June, but with equity markets tepid and North Korea making a lot of noise, the deal got delayed.
A level 2 ADR was filed in the autumn via Lehman Brothers and Samsung Securities and this resulted in Woori Financial Holding getting its US GAAP and financial reporting in order. Yesterday, the government finally mandated lead managers for a level 3 ADR, which will see the government sell down its stake.
Not surprisingly Lehman a shareholder of Woori and Samsung...
