Singapore IPO activity ‘bright' amidst market risks

Singapore raised US$852m in proceeds from eight IPO deals so far this year.

Total initial public offering (IPO) activities in Southeast Asia for almost 11 months this year raised US$6.44b from 100 IPOs despite a host of uncertainties.

Amidst the decrease of the number of IPOs by 38% from 2019 and of the IPO proceeds by 12% from US$7.34b, the total IPO market capitalisation this year inched up 3% to US$25.96b.

Singapore saw its largest homegrown listing through Nanofilm Technologies, which raised US$345m on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) Mainboard.

SGX raised a total of US$852m as of 15 November in IPO proceeds from eight IPO deals, which includes two real estate investment trust IPOs on SGX Mainboard that raised US$479m and five deals on the Catalist board that raised US$29m.

Deloitte Southeast Asia and Singapore disruptive events advisory leader Tay Hwee Ling believes the region will continue to see good growth and expects an upswing in listings as soon as a COVID-19 vaccine is proven safe and effective.

“COVID has made companies reevaluate their business and growth forecast; and companies are looking into windows of opportunity to raise funds from stock markets to support their growth and stay resilient in this challenging climate. Although we are not out of the woods yet, the listing markets in Southeast Asia are still dynamic and attractive to investors,” she said.