China’s biggest online fitness platform Keep to list in Hong Kong after two failed IPO attempts

SoftBank-backed Chinese fitness platform raises US$40 million from the sale of 10.84 million shares on the Hong Kong stock exchange

The Beijing-based company attempted to list in February and September last year

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The number of fitness enthusiasts in China is expected to grow by 24 per cent to 463.5 million between 2022 and 2027. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 5:55pm, 11 Jul 2023Updated: 10:58am, 12 Jul 2023

China’s largest online fitness platform Keep Inc will begin trading in Hong Kong on Wednesday after two previous attempts failed.

The Beijing-based company, backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group, raised HK$313.5 million (US$40 million) from the sale of 10.84 million shares in an initial public offering (IPO), according to an exchange filing. The IPO was priced at the low end of a wide band between HK$28.92 and HK$61.46.

China International Capital Corp (CICC) is the sole sponsor of the deal, with GF Securities, CCB International and Futu Holdings acting as joint bookrunners and lead managers.

Keep’s listing will give global investors access to China’s fitness market, a niche segment of the consumer sector in the Asian nation. China had the most number of fitness enthusiasts in the world at 374 million last year, according to Keep’s prospectus, which cited research from CICC. That number is expected to grow by 24 per cent to 463.5 million by 2027, while per-capita spending on physical fitness in China is only about a sixth of that in the US, implying huge room for growth, it added.

Keep is China’s most popular fitness app with 36.3 million monthly active users last year. Photo: SCMP

“With our online fitness solutions, we have addressed major pain points in China’s fitness market and fundamentally redefined people’s relationship with fitness,” the company said in the prospectus. “Our Keep brand is highly influential and has become synonymous with a passion for fitness.”

The IPO proceeds will be used for research and development, development and diversification of fitness content, branding and promotion, and working capital, it said.

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