In 2004, Google came to market with an IPO. The company took an unconventional approach to pricing. It put its offer to all investors through an open, Dutch auction. All investors, whether individuals or institutions, were asked to submit orders. The deal was then priced at exactly the level required to sell all shares at the highest possible valuation. read
Knowledge is power. And it’s especially true when it comes to investing in initial public offerings. On July 8, fellow columnist Jake van der Kamp argued that retail investors seem to be getting too little of it – or rather that information on IPO issuers is being made available to the public too late in the process (“SFC appears to be in la-la land over listing documents”). read
HONG KONG (Dow Jones Banking Intelligence) – Forget about everything you have read about banks in Asia being asked to provide hard underwriting commitments for IPOs. Brokers have now found a new way to avoid remaining stuck with shares on their books – thanks to increasingly common cornerstone investor arrangements. read
An old joke tells of two matrons having lunch at an expensive restaurant. One lady says, “The food is so bad,” and the other says, “Yes, and the portions are so small.” This neatly sums up IPO bankers’ first half: markets are challenging and they are working harder to sell smaller deals for less fee income. Bankers’ complaints about difficult deals are likely to be followed by grumbling that they don’t have enough of them. read
I was interviewed this morning by anchor Bryan Curtis on Hong Kong’s RTHK 3 radio “Money For Nothing” business programme, on Malaysian and Hong Kong IPOs. read
Last week saw a little noticed event in the cosy world of investment banking, with Russian (and emerging markets) firm Renaissance Capital calling it quits, and closing its offices in both Hong Kong and Beijing after only two years on the ground in Asia. read
I was interviewed again this morning on Bloomberg Television by anchor Rishaad Salamat in the “On The Move Asia” show, on the trading debut for the IPO of Felda Global Ventures. read
Successfully closing IPOs is challenging in these tricky markets. Hong Kong has had its fair share of new listings pulled, delayed or altogether indefinitely postponed over the last year or so. The Securities and Futures Commission’s response has been to turn the screws on new issue sponsors and, now, on auditors. read
Amid an 85% year-on-year decline in global IPO volumes, clean energy firm Huadian Fuxin is set to price an initial public offering of up to US$389 million equivalent (including a 15% over-allotment option) on June 20. As a concession to current volatility, the deal was cut from an original US$1 billion. read
HONG KONG (Dow Jones Banking Intelligence) – The Facebook IPO and its confusing messages have, once again, highlighted differences in IPO market practices between the U.S. and the rest of the world. ECM bankers in New York and the Silicon Valley could in fact take some lessons from Asian ways to send clear guidance to investors – and avoid causing IPO bubbles. read
