Singapore-based firms raised US$816.9b from equity capital

IPO proceeds soared 479.8% to US$344.4m and bolstered ECM activity.

Singapore-based companies raised US$816.9b from equity capital markets (ECM) YTD, marking a 32.7% increase YoY and the strongest start to a year since 2013, Thomson Reuters revealed. The number of ECM issuance grew 18.2% from a year ago.

According to data, initial public offerings (IPO) by Singaporean companies in domestic and overseas stock markets bolstered the nation’s ECM activity, as proceeds skyrocketed by 479.8% to US$344.4m so far. The number of IPOs grew 33.3%.

Sasseur REIT has launched a US$300.7m (S$396.0m) IPO in March. “The deal is currently the biggest Singapore equity offering this year,” the firm said.

Meanwhile, follow-on offerings from Singaporean issuers dropped 56.8% to US$240.2m. Follow-on offerings accounted for 29.4% of Singapore ECM so far this year, whilst IPOs captured 42.2% market share in terms of proceeds. Convertible offerings registered 28.4% market share.

Thomson Reuters said HSBC currently leads the ranking for Singapore ECM underwriting with US$232.3m in related proceeds, capturing 28.4% of the market share. DBS Group follows in second place with 14.6% market share.

The real estate sector ate up the majority of the nation’s ECM activity in terms of proceeds with 92.3% market share and raised US$753.7m, up 48.5% from over a year ago, thanks to REITs and business trust issuance. These include Sasseur REIT US$300.7m IPO and follow-on offerings from Frasers Commercial Trust (US$76.5m) and Ascendas India Trust (US$75.7m).

Consumer Products & Services followed behind in second place with 4.0% market share after raising at least US$32.8m.

Meanwhile, underwriting fees for equity deals issued by Singapore-owned companies totalled US$12.1m, up 5.8% compared to last year. DBS Group currently leads the fee rankings for Singapore equity issuance with US$2.9m in estimated fee revenue, which accounted for 24.0% of the wallet share so far this year.

Singapore-listed equity offerings also soared by 134.8% to US$1.5b, marking the strongest start to a year since 2013. “This was driven by follow-on offerings in Singapore stock exchanges that raised US$1.2b in proceeds so far this year, up 133.4% from a year ago. IPO listings raised US$ 315.6m, up 140.7% from the first quarter of 2017,” Thomson Reuters added.

South Korean messaging app operator Kakao Corp raised US$1b from the sale of global depository receipts in Singapore Exchange.