IPO fundraising set to top $40 billion mark this year

Fundraising by China's new IPOs in 2016 is estimated to hit 250 billion yuan ($40 billion) to 300 billion yuan this year, making the A-share IPO market the biggest one globally, accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers said on Monday.

The number of new IPOs is expected to reach 400, fueled by the registration-based IPO system and the launch of the Strategic Emerging Industries Board, said Frank Lyn, PwC China and Hong Kong Markets Leader.

"We believe such measures will positively influence IPO activities, and the acceleration of the registration system will further open up and enhance the A-share market," said Lyn.

"Due to differences in estimated value in different capital markets, the trend of Chinese companies returning to A shares is expected to continue."

China will launch a registration-based initial public offering system in March to boost the role of the country's stock market and provide the necessary financing for companies.

Jean Sun, PwC China Assurance Partner, said: "The core of registration systems is to enhance information disclosure to ensure issuers and intermediaries take responsibility. Companies planning to list should pay attention to the quality and sufficiency of information disclosure."

PwC also surveyed emerging enterprises and potential IPO applicants and found 80 percent of attendees were planning to go public in the domestic capital market.

Key concerns of emerging enterprises pointed to ambiguous time frames required to verify applicants, non-transparency of initial public offering procedures, and financial conditions and profit requirements to qualify applicants.

The same companies surveyed expect both the new registration system with the Strategic Emerging Industrial Board can alleviate concerns to some extent, according PwC's findings.

Ernst & Young LLP, another international accounting firm, predicted last week that the number of IPO deals is likely to surpass 350 this year.

There were 219 IPOs in 2015 on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets, compared with 125 in 2014, PwC's statistics showed. Despite listings suspension from July to November last year, fundraising reached 158.6 billion yuan, an increase from 78.6 billion in 2014.

Global capital markets fluctuated due to uncertainty in the global economy. However, the Hong Kong capital market remained relatively stable and strong. Total funds raised were 215.7 billion yuan, an increase of 12 percent comparing to that of 2014.

Hong Kong surpassed the United States to become the largest capital market in 2015. Funds raised on New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ totaled 211.6 billion yuan to rank second highest in the world.

huyuanyuan@chinadaily.com.cn