SGX, A*STAR to help firms access capital markets

They inked a two-year deal.

Singapore Exchange and Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)'s ETPL will be teaming up to help start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) tap on innovative technologies and capital more efficiently.

Under the two-year memorandum of understanding (MOU), the two entities will jointly identify companies with growth potential to help them access growth capital from private or public capital markets in Singapore efficiently.

The partnership also seeks to help start-ups and SMEs better translate their inventions and intellectual capital into marketable products, processes and services. The identified enterprises can tap on A*STAR’s multidisciplinary research and development (R&D) capabilities which span across the biomedical sciences and physical sciences and engineering, and receive ETPL’s guidance in productisation and business development.

SGX and ETPL will raise awareness amongst these fast growing innovative companies on the technology transfer opportunities in Singapore, and SGX will organise forums on how the identified companies can raise capital and use Singapore as a springboard into the Asia-Pacific region.

The partnership will also provide financial education to enterprises, which include A*STAR’s spin-offs and licensees, as well as investors and potential investors. These education efforts will include offering insights into different channels of capital raising for growth, as well as business models and industry outlooks.

The partnership, targeted at companies in the technology sector, including subsectors such as medtech, biotech, cleantech, digital tech and consumer tech, will foster greater information sharing and engagement between the financial and technology communities, and allow technology companies to develop a keener appreciation of using Singapore’s capital markets as a source of funding and a platform to expand their businesses globally.

To facilitate the collaboration, six market professionals have committed to come onboard and provide professional support to the companies identified by ETPL and SGX. These organisations are: Catalist Sponsors SAC Capital Private Limited and UOB Kay Hian Private Limited, law firms Virtus Law LLP and WongPartnership LLP, and audit firms Deloitte Singapore and PwC Singapore.