SINGAPORE - Shares of iX Biopharma, a Singapore-based speciality pharmaceutical company, made a strong debut opening on the Catalist board on Wednesday morning.

The counter opened at 49.5 cents, 3.5 cents or 7.6 per cent above its initial public offering (IPO) price of 46 cents.

At about 11:30am, it was trading at 58 cents, 12 cents or 26 per cent above its IPO price.

The listing of iX Biopharma brings the total number of healthcare companies on the Singapore Exchange to 31 with a combined market capitalisation of over $38 billion.

The Catalist board now has 160 companies with a total market capitalisation of about $10 billion.

iX Biopharma raised close to $30 million from its IPO and a bullk of that sum, $26.7 million, will be used to fund clinical trials for the development of its products.

The drugmaker specializes in the development of medical products for the treatment of accute pain and male erectile dysfunction. It undertakes its research and development in Singapore and Australia.