SINGAPORE (Oct 9): Loh Boon Chye, CEO of Singapore Exchange, gave a vague response as to whether the listing of Saudi Aramco – touted as potentially the world’s largest IPO ever – could take place here.
He also did not confirm nor deny that SGX officials have been diligently courting the world’s largest oil producer to list on SGX, which could potentially raise close to US$100 billion.
“I think we are as well-positioned as any other potential exchange,” he said during a panel discussion at the 59th World Federation of Exchanges General Assembly & Annual Meeting on Wednesday.
Still, Loh said such a listing of “significance” would undoubtedly attract many bourse operators.
But to win over Aramco, bourse operators need to position themselves with the right attributes to ensure Aramco’s successful listing, he said.
For example, SGX can leverage Singapore’s AAA credit rating and its status as a regional financial centre, he added.
According to sources quoted by Bloomberg in August, top officials from the London Stock Exchange Group, the New York Stock Exchange and Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing have been actively pitching Aramco.
While the oil producer is planning a local listing on the Saudi stock exchange as part of the IPO, it has yet to make a decision on other venues, the sources said.
