The first eight months of 2024 saw 575 initial public offerings (IPO) raising a combined total of US$23.7 billion ($30.5 billion) in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, says data and analytics company GlobalData.
This represents a 15.6% increase in terms of IPO proceeds as compared to the same period in 2023.
The IPO scene in APAC was led by India, which had 227 IPO listings with a deal value of US$12.2 billion in India during the first eight months.
“The Indian IPO market saw exceptional growth in the first eight months of 2024, with proceeds nearly tripling to US$12.2 billion, compared to US$4.3 billion during the same period in 2023,” says Murthy Grandhi, company profiles analyst at GlobalData.
South Korea and Japan also saw tremendous growth in their IPO markets. South Korea saw a whopping 185.7% increase, with 60 IPOs raising a total of US$1.2 billion, while Japan had a 48.5% increase, with 49 IPOs generating US$1.6 billion. According to GlobalData, this can be attributed to the liberalisation of trading rules, offering a more favourable environment for public listings.
On the other hand, China saw a 8% decrease in deals on their IPO market with a mere 69 transactions raising just over US$5 billion. This is due to structural and cyclical constraints, GlobalData notes.
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The technology and communications industry dominated the APAC IPO market, recording 105 transactions amounting to US$2.4 billion. The construction industry came in strong with 68 deals amounting to US$2.2 billion.
Significant IPOs included HD Hyundai Marine Solution Co Ltd and Bharti Hexacom Ltd with deal values of US$540 million and US$795 million, respectively.
Looking ahead, GlobalData expects “a significant resurgence in IPO activity across the APAC region, driven by larger transactions and accelerating momentum. While certain APAC markets, such as India, Japan, and parts of Asean, are experiencing bullish trends and strong capital inflows, others are navigating liquidity constraints and valuation pressures, particularly few sectors within China,” Grandhi says.
