Latest news with #SingaporeExchangeRegulation
Straits Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Shareholders of Singapore Paincare Holdings should wait for report: Sias
Singapore Paincare will be delisted from the Singapore Exchange's Catalist board if the deal is successful. PHOTO: ST FILE SINGAPORE - Minority shareholders of Singapore Paincare Holdings, which has received a privatisation offer, should wait for a report to be released by an appointed independent financial adviser before selling their shares on the open market , said the Securities Investors Association (Singapore), or Sias, on June 4. Shareholders who do sell on the open market will not have recourse if the privatisation offer price is subsequently revised upwards, Sias added. It also reminded shareholders that 'for a delisting to take place, the IFA has to conclude that the offer is both fair and reasonable'. Singapore Paincare, a local medical services company, has received a privatisation offer from Advance Bridge Healthcare at 16 cents a share, valuing the company at about $27 million. This was announced after the firm requested a trading halt on May 27. The offer represents a 27 per cent premium over its last traded price and 77.8 per cent above its share price in March 2024, when a potential deal was first announced. Singapore Paincare will be delisted from the Singapore Exchange's Catalist board if the deal is successful. According to guidelines by Singapore Exchange Regulation, an offer is 'fair' if the value of the offer price is greater than or equal to the value of the securities subject to the offer. Securities are tradeable financial assets such as shares in a company. How 'reasonable' an offer is depends on factors such as the concentration of pre-existing voting power in the securities of the issuer, the market liquidity of those securities and the likelihood of an alternative offer being made. Sias noted that Singapore Paincare was listed at 22 cents per share in July 2020 during Covid-19 when valuations were depressed and when the Straits Times Index (STI) was trading at around 2,500. Sias added that the company now wishes to delist at 16 cents per share when the STI is trading at around 3,900. The company's initial public offering (IPO) price of 22 cents was also a 123 per cent premium on the group's unaudited net asset value per share of about 9.86 cents on Dec 31, Sias noted. It added that the price offered under the scheme of arrangement is at a slight discount to the company's audited net asset value per share of 16.6 cents as at June 30, 2024, while the unaudited net asset value stands at 16.3 cents per share as at Dec 31, 2024. 'If the same IPO premium was to be applied now, the privatisation price should be around 36 cents to 37 cents,' Sias said, noting that 'well-managed healthcare companies generally trade at premiums to their net asset value'. It added that the deal is conducted through a scheme of arrangement, which means the approval of the scheme has to be approved by more than 50 per cent of those present and voting at the scheme meeting, and by more than 75 per cent in value of the shares held by shareholders voting. 'Sias would like to remind all offerors to treat shareholders fairly... As such, they should therefore make offers that are fair and reasonable when subsequently delisting,' it said. Sue-Ann Tan is a business correspondent at The Straits Times covering capital markets and sustainable finance. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
CNA
20-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - What does the end of the SGX watchlist mean?
CNA938 Rewind Play In a nod to the increasing diversity and complexity of the stock market and investors, the Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) has proposed shifting its regulatory stance towards a more proactive disclosure-based regime. Andrea Heng and Hairianto Diman look at what this new regime entails with Ven Sreenivasan, veteran financial journalist
Singapore Law Watch
16-05-2025
- Business
- Singapore Law Watch
MAS proposes key changes in IPO rules and processes to boost SGX's appeal
MAS proposes key changes in IPO rules and processes to boost SGX's appeal Source: Business Times Article Date: 16 May 2025 Author: Ranamita Chakraborty Key focus areas include streamlining prospectus disclosures for primary listings, where issuers will focus on the disclosure of core information that are most relevant and material for investors. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is currently seeking feedback on proposed changes to simplify prospectus requirements and enhance investor outreach for initial public offerings (IPOs), it announced on Thursday (May 15). The consultation is open until Jun 14. This is in tandem with a separate Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) consultation paper, which is seeking feedback on changes to rules on listing admission and post-listing disclosures. Collectively, these proposals from MAS and SGX RegCo aim to facilitate more listings by issuers, alongside enhanced disclosures for investors. They are part of the initial set of recommendations introduced by the MAS equities market review group in February, to boost the competitiveness of Singapore's equities market. MAS said its proposals aim to streamline the listing process for issuers and provide broader options for reaching potential investors. The key focus areas include streamlining prospectus disclosures for primary listings, where issuers will focus on the disclosure of core information that are most relevant and material for investors. This will concentrate issuers' effort on disclosures that are most pertinent for decision-making by investors. For secondary listings, MAS proposes aligning disclosure requirements with baseline international disclosure standards which are already commonly adopted by most established markets, including Singapore. Specifically, this includes the International Disclosure Standards for Cross-Border Offerings and Initial Listings by Foreign Issuers, as issued by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (Iosco). These simplified requirements allow issuers who already have primary listings elsewhere to use the same prospectuses with minimal adaptation for their secondary listing on SGX, said MAS. Additionally, it is proposing changes to existing legislation to allow issuers to gauge investor interest earlier in the IPO process. This will support bookbuilding efforts as well as give investors more time to familiarise themselves with the issuers and their intended offers. MAS said it has considered feedback and suggestions from industry stakeholders in formulating these proposals, while also taking into account the requirements and practices of major equities markets. Other proposals from the review group are expected later in the year in line with the moves to attract high-quality listings. Views, suggestions and comments can be submitted via a FormSG link. Market players told The Business Times that MAS' initiatives are welcome moves. 'As major financial markets have adopted the Iosco standards for prospectus compliance, it will facilitate more foreign listed companies to do a secondary listing on SGX,' said Robson Lee, partner at Kennedys Law. He noted that the current proposals will allow issuers to adapt their original offer document from their home exchange without needing to comply with any additional prescriptive requirements under the Singapore Securities and Futures Act. James Leong, CEO of trading firm Grasshopper Asia, pointed out that while Singapore has significant assets under management, very little of that capital is flowing into SGX-listed companies. He views the proposals as 'a welcome first step towards enhancing SGX's competitiveness and appeal' adding that Singapore has the opportunity to establish itself as a 'preeminent regional equities hub'. Source: The Business Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction. MAS: Consultation paper on streamlining of prospectus requirements and broadening of investor outreach channels Print
Straits Times
16-05-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Singapore shares climb on May 16; STI gains 0.2%
Gainers trounced losers 307 to 203 across the broader market on trade of one billion securities worth $1.1 billion. ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO SINGAPORE – Investors here latched on to optimistic news from two fronts to help send local stocks a touch higher on May 16. One boost came from announcements that the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Singapore Exchange Regulation are seeking feedback on proposed changes to the Singapore bourse that might inject more spark into the market. Wall Street helped as well, with the S&P 500 rising 0.4 per cent overnight for the fourth straight day on the back of investors increasingly hopeful that tariff tensions will ease following the US and China agreeing to a 90-day truce in their trade war. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.6 per cent but the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.2 per cent. It was all enough for local investors to get behind the bourse and nudge the Straits Times Index (STI) up 0.2 per cent or 5.93 points to 3,897.87. Gainers trounced losers 307 to 203 across the broader market on trade of one billion securities worth $1.1 billion. The STI's biggest winner was CapitaLand Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust, which added 1.5 per cent to $2.63, while conglomerate Jardine Matheson led the losers, falling 1.5 per cent to US$46.74. STI constituent Singtel gained 1.3 per cent to $3.80 after the group announced it had sold a 1.2 per cent stake in India's Bharti Airtel for $2 billion. The local banks were mixed. DBS, which traded ex-dividend, fell 1.1 per cent to $44.60, UOB edged up per cent to $35.50 while OCBC gained 0.5 per cent to $16.32. Regional indexes were also mixed. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.5 per cent, South Korea's Kospi rose 0.2 per cent, Malaysian shares slid 0.1 per cent and Japan's Nikkei 225 closed flat. The ASX 200 in Australia had another strong week and signed off with a gain of 0.6 per cent, its eighth positive session in a row, ahead of an expected interest rate cut next week. THE BUSINESS TIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
16-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Singapore shares climb on Friday; STI gains 0.2%
[SINGAPORE] Local stocks rose on Friday (May 16), a day after the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Singapore Exchange Regulation announced they were seeking feedback on proposed changes to the Singapore bourse. The stock exchange's blue-chip barometer, the Straits Times Index (STI), rose 0.2 per cent or 5.93 points to 3,897.87. Across the broader market, gainers beat losers 307 to 203, as one billion securities worth S$1.1 billion changed hands. The biggest winner on the STI was CapitaLand Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust , which was up 1.5 per cent or S$0.04 at S$2.63. On the other end of the index was conglomerate Jardine Matheson , which fell 1.5 per cent or US$0.70 to US$46.74. Another STI constituent, Singtel , gained 1.3 per cent or S$0.05 to S$3.80, after the group announced it has sold a 1.2 per cent stake in India's Bharti Airtel for S$2 billion. Over 26.9 million Singtel shares worth S$102.1 million were traded. The local bank counters finished mixed. DBS , which traded ex-dividend, fell 1.1 per cent or S$0.50 to S$44.60. UOB edged up slightly by S$0.01 to S$35.50. Meanwhile, OCBC gained 0.5 per cent or S$0.08 to S$16.32. Outside Singapore, regional indices ended mixed. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.5 per cent, while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.2 per cent. The Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index slid 0.1 per cent and Japan's Nikkei 225 closed flat.
