Kisu Hospitality Freezes Historic Tel Aviv Stock Exchange IPO After Institutional Rejection
Kisu Hospitality's historic IPO on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange has been frozen after institutional investors rejected its valuation, offering only 270 million shekels.
A dramatic turnaround in the local market: the planned mega-IPO of Kisu Hospitality, which was supposed to be the first-ever restaurant chain to list on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, has been frozen and postponed indefinitely. The dramatic decision was made after the company's owners met a cold shoulder from institutional investors, who refused to supply the requested market valuation, Ynet reported.
Initially, Kisu aimed for a glittering company valuation of about 400 million shekels, with the goal of raising about 88 million shekels. After realizing the market sentiment, the chain attempted to compromise on a reduced valuation of 300 to 330 million shekels. However, institutional offers on the ground stopped at around 270 million shekels only.
Therefore, in the absence of cash flow pressure or an urgent need for cash, the owners preferred to hit the brakes and wait for more stable days. This step not only takes the wind out of the hot wave of financial institutional investments in the culinary sector, but also proves that the relatively modest fundraising simply did not excite the big money players in the market.
As recalled, the outline of the historic IPO was published in July. It is important to note that the Kisu group operates eight successful Asian restaurants (including Po Sushi, Sun-Yang, and Nishi) and plans to establish four more. It finished the first half of 2026 with a turnover of 183 million shekels and an operating profit of 24 million shekels. Before running to the stock exchange, the chain attracted a series of leading business figures—including Uri Max (Max Stock), Adam Friedler (Good Pharm), and Haim Galis (Big)—who entered at an average valuation of only 175 million shekels.
