Singapore bourse ranks 10th globally by IPO proceeds in Q2

Listings by Eagle Hospitality Trust and ARA US Hospitality Trust helped the SGX to secure 10th place in the global rankings, says professional services firm EY. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
Listings by Eagle Hospitality Trust and ARA US Hospitality Trust helped the SGX to secure 10th place in the global rankings, says professional services firm EY. ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

Two big property trust listings lifted the Singapore Exchange (SGX) into the top 10 of global bourses by initial public offering (IPO) proceeds in the second quarter.

Eagle Hospitality Trust raised gross proceeds of US$565.8 million (S$766.5 million) in its IPO while ARA US Hospitality Trust generated US$498 million. This helped the SGX secure 10th place in the global rankings, said professional services firm EY yesterday.

It also noted that there was a "notable increase" in deal numbers in Asean in the quarter, with 29 IPOs - 53 per cent higher than in the first three months of the year.

There was also a significant boost in proceeds at US$1.7 billion, suggesting some signs of market recovery.

The SGX has been the top bourse in Asean by IPO proceeds so far this year, accounting for 61 per cent of capital raised in the region.

It also accounted for 17 per cent of the deal numbers in Asean, behind the Indonesian stock exchange, which captured 35 per cent of deal volume.

  • 61%

    The Singapore Exchange accounts for this percentage of capital raised in the region so far this year.

Asean exchanges have had 48 IPOs so far this year, down 8 per cent and with a 55 per cent drop in proceeds to US$2.0 billion, compared with the first half of last year.

IPO activity in the Asia-Pacific region fell 12 per cent by volume to 266, with proceeds down 27 per cent to US$22.3 billion, compared with last year. But the Asia-Pacific has continued to dominate global IPO activity, representing six of the top 10 exchanges by volume and three of the top 10 by proceeds.

China recorded 33 IPOs in the first half of this year, 27 per cent more than a year earlier, but funds raised fell 38 per cent to US$5.1 billion from a lack of mega IPOs.

The global IPO market, however, is showing "continued signs" of a slowdown despite some mega listings, said EY. The number of deals was down 28 per cent from a year ago to 507. These raised total proceeds of US$71.9 billion.

The technology, healthcare and industrial sectors saw the largest share of IPOs in the first half of this year, accounting for 266, or 52 per cent. These sectors raised US$47.8 billion, or 66 per cent of global proceeds.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 28, 2019, with the headline Singapore bourse ranks 10th globally by IPO proceeds in Q2. Subscribe