Goldman Sachs not considering buying Ticket Monster

Ticket Monster, or TMON, South Korea's first deal-of-the-day website, seems to be struggling to find an investor to shape its managerial direction and put the company on a solid financial footing.

On Friday, investment bank Goldman Sachs denied market reports that it was considering buying the social commerce firm.

Local news outlet MoneyToday had reported on the day that the U.S. firm planned to purchase some or all stakes in Ticket Monster or create a strategic alliance with other Korean firms including GS Home Shopping, CJ O Shopping and SK Telecom for a joint takeover.

"The reports of Goldman Sachs acquiring the management rights of Ticket Monster are groundless," said a high-ranking official of the Korean branch of Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs is currently set to lead the upcoming IPO of TMON’s rival firm Coupang.

Up to 51 percent of TMON shares have been in the market for a while. The company posted 114.8 billion won ($104 million) in sales and 70.7 billion won in operating loss in 2013. 
 

Despite some of the skepticism, Groupon, the U.S.-based holding firm of TMON, said that its plans to raise funds for its Korean subsidiary were on track.

"We've just begun the process (to raise funds), which is moving along as expected, but given TMON's performance and the broader e-commerce valuations in Korea and Asia, we're happy with both the interest and progress to date," Bill Roberts, the director of Groupon's communications team, told The Korea Herald.

"It is also worth noting that TMON is growing rapidly. In the third quarter, TMON billings grew more than 60 percent, year over year," he added.

The e-commerce company, established in 2010 by Daniel Shin, in his twenties, changed holding companies twice in less than four years. It was first acquired by U.S. social commerce LivingSocial for around $360 million in August 2011 and then by Groupon for $260 million in November 2013.

Market watchers suggest that TMON may be having trouble with its holding firm due to different management styles. The cutthroat competition is seen as another factor holding the firm back, and experts are calling for TMON to get back on track as fast as it can in order to regain market confidence.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)