Turkish e-commerce platform Hepsiburada has become the first Turkish company to be offered to the public on NASDAQ, the U.S. stock exchange where technology giants are traded. The company was valued at $3.9 billion ahead of the ceremony held in New York today.
“Hepsiburada becomes the first Turkish company ever to be listed on Nasdaq. This would not have been possible without the passion and dedication of our employees, merchants and the support of our customers. To you all – thank you. We look forward to seeing what comes next,” the company said on its official Twitter account after the ceremony.
The capital from the public offering to the company was calculated around $738 million, some 20% of the total shares, The public offering was held with 56,740,000 Group B shares at $12 per share.
Speaking at the press conference held on the occasion of Hepsiburada’s entry into NASDAQ, Hepsiburada CEO Emirdağ stated that the company’s pre-IPO share distribution is 75 percent under the control of founder Hanzade Doğan Boyner, with the remaining 25 percent being under the control of financial investor fund Franklin Templeton.
After the public offering the shares of Hanzade Doğan Boyner, the founder, and her family were reduced to 65 percent, while the shares of Franklin Templeton were cut by another 10 percent.
Hanzade Doğan Boyner, the cair of Hepsiburada, said the company would continue to focus on its core markets, but also aiming for an international expansion. “Considering the proximity of our local market and our capabilities, we are looking at the Middle East, North Africa, the Balkans and some Eastern European countries,” she said.
