As other Asian equity markets boom, Singapore sees value over volume in SGX’s IPO rebound

The Singapore IPO market is characterised by low-count, high-value listings, he noted.

Listings in Singapore in the first half of 2026 already raised US$868 million across just five companies – UI Boustead real estate investment trust, Toku, The Assembly Place, Kin Global and JustCo Holdings, he added.

But Singapore has room to improve on aftermarket performance, said Asst Prof Goh, noting that the 2026 listings on SGX have not delivered a sustained post-debut rally.

“This is one key metric to look at, because typically a weak aftermarket performance is one key factor that deters future issuers.”

NEW MEASURES WORKING

UOB’s head of equity capital markets Mark Wee said the Singapore market has benefited from coordinated and proactive efforts by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), SGX and the broader industry to deepen and strengthen the equities ecosystem.

This includes initiatives such as the equity market development programme, he added.

The S$5 billion programme launched by MAS involves putting money with fund managers focused on investing in Singapore stocks.

“These efforts are beginning to yield results, and we remain positive on the outlook for Singapore’s IPO and equity markets,” said Mr Wee.

Aside from the initiatives to attract capital and fund management activities, Singapore is also well-positioned to leverage several structural trends, including ASEAN’s growth and rising private wealth in Asia, he added.

The bank is seeing a healthy pipeline of prospective issuers and increasing confidence in Singapore as a capital-raising hub, said Mr Wee.

In May, Singapore passed laws to allow companies to dual list on SGX and American stock exchange Nasdaq while cutting down on paperwork. SGX had said its planned dual-listing link with Nasdaq could go live in months, with the first listings expected in the second half of the year.

From Oct 5, the standard board lot size will be reduced from 100 units to 10 units for instruments priced above S$10, up to S$100, giving investors easier access to the Singapore stock market.

“Aside from the measures being put in place, the market timing couldn’t be better,” said DBS’ Mr Lee, noting that with volatility and geopolitical tensions around the world, investors, companies and issuers need to start diversifying.

From a currency standpoint, the Singapore dollar is very attractive and seen as a safe haven, said Mr Lee.

“Now, we have a fair bit of liquidity chasing after assets. So the urgency to bring assets and issues into the Singapore stock exchange … has grown much higher than before.”

Singapore is an impartial centre and all its regulations are written in English, he added.

If a business is not heavily anchored in a big financial hub like the US, China or Europe, and it is looking to list in an “impartial place”, Singapore becomes very viable, said Mr Lee.

This also explains why companies from other countries in Southeast Asia where markets are currently “a bit choppy” are looking to list in Singapore, especially if they are international businesses, he added.

“We’re at the beginning of pushing our automobile onto the racetrack after having it not run for many years. It’s moving, it’s on a cold start. The initial steps are encouraging but there’s lots more work to be done.”

GAPS WITH HONG KONG AND MALAYSIA

In any case, markets cannot be compared simply based on the volume of listings each year. Analysts highlighted the structural differences between various markets that make them incomparable. 

These contrasts cannot be resolved through regulation, they said.

For example, Malaysia has a large domestic SME base while Singapore’s domestic corporate base is smaller simply because it has a smaller population, said SMU’s Asst Prof Goh.

“You cannot simply regulate more listing candidates into existence,” he added.

Hong Kong has a strong pipeline of mainland Chinese companies, including those that are already listed on the Shanghai or Shenzhen stock exchanges that are seeking an additional Hong Kong listing to access international capital, Asst Prof Goh noted.

The Straits Times Index is dominated by banks and real estate investment trusts where buyers are income-oriented, not early-stage growth equity companies, which is what Hong Kong is good at listing, he added.

It would be challenging for Singapore to close the listing volume gap with Hong Kong due to these structural issues. Nevertheless, Singapore still has great potential for quality listings, said Asst Prof Goh, noting the new measures.

“Personally, I don’t think Singapore needs to match Hong Kong’s IPO proceeds or listing count,” he added, noting that the scale of Hong Kong’s listings reflects its unique role as the international capital market for mainland Chinese companies, which is not a realistic benchmark for Singapore.

“Hong Kong’s scale may be more spectacular, but is likely more sensitive to policy changes and investor sentiment.”

Singapore lacks a track record and needs more confidence, Mr Lee said, noting that market openness is not a limiting factor.

With more confidence from issuers and investors, the IPOs here will benefit from a broader base of investments, which will in turn generate more demand to deepen the market, he added.

Immediate complaints like the lack of aftermarket support or having liquidity but not enough things to invest in are problems that can be solved once confidence builds up, said Mr Lee.

“The whole market is working to ensure that, encourage that, and see what more we can do to broaden the investor base, broaden the participation level to have that depth. Once you have the depth, then you can take your foot off the pedal, the car will run itself.”