Initial public offerings by technology companies in China are likely to recover this year due to the upcoming launch of a new board for strategic emerging industries, PricewaterhouseCoopers said.
“During the second half of 2015, the suspension of new listings led to fewer TMT (technology, media and telecommunications) IPOs than in the first half,” said Gao Jianbin, PwC China TMT leader. “IPO activity in 2016 is expected to improve” after the authorities lifted the suspension.
He added that an analysis of IPO applicants indicates the number of such IPOs is set to rank among the top three worldwide this year.
In the second half of last year, 14 TMT IPOs took up one third of the number recorded in the first half of 2015, PwC said. They raised 15.5 billion yuan ($2.4 billion), down 30 percent from a year earlier, data showed.
The listings included four cross-border IPOs that raised 10.6 billion yuan from overseas markets, taking up 69 percent of the total proceeds. The ChiNext board for growth enterprises drew four IPOs that raised 1.5 billion yuan.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange is expected to launch a strategic emerging industry board this year.
“In the long term, we still expect more high-profile TMT companies to go for A-share listings,” said Shen Jie of PwC.
