SmartNews has received approval to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market and is scheduled to list on 15 December. Its market capitalization is expected to be approximately ¥43 billion, about 80% below the roughly ¥210 billion valuation before listing.
SmartNews, the news app, has received approval from the Tokyo Stock Exchange to list and will list on the TSE Growth Market on 15 December. Its market capitalization at listing is estimated at approximately ¥43 billion. The company was valued at approximately ¥210 billion before listing, so the current estimate is expected to be substantially lower.
The assumed offer price is ¥1,390 per share. No new shares will be issued in connection with the listing. In addition to additional shares offered depending on supply and demand, approximately 9,293,700 shares will be offered in Japan, with sales also planned in overseas markets including Europe and Asia.
The most recent consolidated results, under International Financial Reporting Standards, were for the fiscal year ended December 2025. Revenue rose 8% year on year to ¥34.1 billion, and net income was ¥1.2 billion. Since its founding, the company has focused on its news app, which provides free articles from multiple media outlets, and has also expanded into the US market since its establishment in 2012.
The company has raised more than ¥44.2 billion from venture capital firms to date. It was valued as a unicorn in 2019, and its enterprise value exceeded ¥200 billion as of 2021.
The joint lead managers for the IPO are Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities, Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities and Nomura Securities.