Chinese streaming platform DouYu International sets terms for US IPO

NEW YORK - DouYu International Holdings, an e-sports live streaming platform in China, announced terms for its initial public offering (IPO) on the US stock market on Monday.

The company plans to offer 67,387,110 American Depositary Shares (ADSs) at a price range of $11.50 to $14.00 apiece, according to its latest prospectus filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

It has applied for listing the ADSs on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "DOYU," said the company.

Founded in 2014, the Wuhan-based company operates its platform both on PC and mobile apps, through which users can enjoy immersive and interactive games and entertainment live streaming.

The company expects to use the net proceeds of this offering primarily to provide premium e-sports content and further expand content genres, to further strengthen technologies and big data analytic capabilities, to invest in marketing activities and for general corporate purposes.

China's games market is becoming increasingly e-sports-based, the company said in its prospectus.

e-sports is a form of competition through multi-player video games with online functionality, and has evolved into one of the most popular game genres given its high demand of dexterity, foresight and strategy.

China's e-sports gamers as a percentage of overall gamer population has increased from 19.4 percent in 2015 to 51.3 percent in 2018, and is expected to reach 57.4 percent by 2023, according to consulting firm iResearch.