By Niket Nishant and Echo Wang
(Reuters) - Shares of Brazil's VTEX rose as much as 32% in their New York Stock Exchange debut on Wednesday, giving the e-commerce software platform a valuation of $4.7 billion and underscoring investor interest in the sector.
SoftBank Group-backed VTEX's stock opened at $25.10, higher than the initial public offering (IPO) price of $19. It was about 20% higher in afternoon trading.
The 21-year-old company helps customers execute their commerce strategies, such as building online stores and managing orders, and its platform is used by the likes of Sony Corp, Nestle and McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD).
VTEX is planning to expand its product offering and will also invest in international expansion, co-Chief Executive Officer Mariano Gomide de Faria said in an interview.
"We are already growing in Europe and the United States. We are not expecting high growth from these regions for now, but we are investing a lot," Faria said.
VTEX raised $361 million in its IPO, selling 19 million shares above the top end of its $15 and $17 target range.
About 5.1 million of those shares were offered by the selling shareholders, the proceeds from which will not go to the company.
VTEX is the latest highly valued non-U.S. company to cash in on the country's red-hot capital markets. Foreign IPOs in the United States have collected over $23.5 billion in proceeds as of June 22, up from $4.6 billion a year earlier, according to Refinitiv.
"We're starting to see more and more non-U.S. companies considering a listing in the United States," said Alex Ibrahim, head of international capital markets at NYSE.
"We have an incredible pipeline for the rest of the year that includes companies from Europe, Canada, Latin America, and also from Asia, especially Southeast Asia."
KeyBanc Capital Markets, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) and Itaú BBA were the joint bookrunners for VTEX's offering, while J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs & Co (NYSE:GS). LLC and BofA Securities were the global coordinators.