E-paper giant DKE edges up in Hong Kong trading debut

Shares of e-paper display maker DKE Holding Co. Ltd. (1770.HK) opened 1.89% lower in their Hong Kong trading debut on Thursday, before rebounding to HK$78.8 by the midday break, up 0.2%.

The company said it issued 5.12 million shares at an offer price of HK$78.64 per share, raising net proceeds of about HK$355.4 million ($45 million). Its Hong Kong public offering for local investors was oversubscribed by more than 1,000 times, while the international placement was oversubscribed by 2.69 times.

DKE develops, produces and sells e-paper display modules. E-paper is a low-power display technology that mimics the appearance of paper. It consumes almost no power when an image remains static, and is commonly used in e-readers, electronic shelf labels, smart offices, smart logistics and transport information displays.

The company said that by 2025 revenue, it was the world’s second-largest e-paper display manufacturer with a market share of 20.8%, and the world’s largest commercial e-paper display manufacturer with 24.9% of the market. Its revenue last year rose 48.8% to 1.71 billion yuan ($252 million), while its net profit increased about 50.2% to 80.23 million yuan.

The company said about 65% of the proceeds will be used to expand capacity and digitalize its production bases, 25% will be used to develop full-color, large-sized and flexible e-paper products and the remaining 10% will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes.

The company was originally scheduled to list on July 8, but postponed its debut to July 9 to finalize its pricing and allotment announcement and obtain regulatory approval.

By Lee Shih Ta

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