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Stanley Druckenmiller, Bill Ackman are among the big early investors in hot IPO Coupang

  • Billionaire investors Stanley Druckenmiller and Bill Ackman were early backers of Coupang.
  • The South Korean e-commerce giant nearly doubled from its initial public offering price shortly after Thursday's midday open.
  • Coupang raised $4.6 billion in its IPO, the largest one in the U.S. so far this year.

Stanley Druckenmiller (L), and Bill AckmanCNBC

South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang, which soared in its Wall Street debut, got early backing from a couple high-profile investors: Stanley Druckenmiller and Bill Ackman.

Coupang, dubbed the Amazon of South Korea, nearly doubled from its initial public offering price of $35 per share shortly after Thursday's midday open on the New York Stock Exchange.

The stock later pared those gains and closed up almost 41% at $49.25 per share, giving Coupang a market capitalization of $84.5 billion.

Druckenmiller, the billionaire CEO of the Duquesne Family Office, has been a longtime, pre-IPO investor in the Seoul-based company, Kevin Warsh, an advisor to Druckenmiller, told CNBC's Becky Quick. Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor, joined the board of Coupang in 2019. Warsh owns a total 280,662 shares of Coupang, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Ackman, the billionaire who runs the Pershing Square Capital Management hedge fund, invested personally in Coupang, a source close to the situation told CNBC. It's unclear when that investment was made. But a Reuters report in 2014 mentions Ackman as an investor.

Coupang raised $4.6 billion in its IPO, the largest one in the U.S. so far this year. The company sold 130 million shares at $35 apiece Wednesday evening, above its target range of $32 to $34.

The company was founded in 2010 by Bom Kim, who continues to serve as CEO. Other investors include Masayoshi Son's SoftBank Group.

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