Philippine Stock Exchange hopes to attract more companies to go public

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The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) hopes to attract more companies to go public to grow their business, according to PSE president and CEO Ramon Monzon.

Monzon said the PSE hopes to replicate 2021's robust pipeline of initial public offerings (IPOs) this year.

'We have had a robust IPO since last year. With more companies inquiring how they can tap the equities market for capital to fund their expansion, we deemed it essential to offer a more comprehensive road to IPO program,' Monzon said.

The PSE is gathering the country's tycoons and executives from some of the country's biggest listed firms to speak on the success of their respective IPOs.

'The road to being a publicly listed company involves several parties. Through this event, we hope to give participants much needed insights about going public from heads of listed companies and connect them with seasoned IPO advisors that can guide them in their IPO journey,' Monzon said.

The virtual event scheduled on Sept. 15 aims to gather business owners who would like to know more about the benefits of IPO listing and the requirements and processes in successfully conducting a maiden share offering to the public, the PSE said.

Featured speakers during the event are JG Summit Holdings Inc. president and CEO Lance Gokongwei, DMCI Holdings founding director, CFO and executive vice president Herbert Consunji and GT Capital Holdings chairman Francisco Sebastian.

The PSE also invited its PSE Listing Engagement and Assistance Program (LEAP) partners to host virtual booths during the event, where participants can schedule online consultations and meetings, among others.

LEAP is a PSE marketing program focused on assisting interested and potential listing applicants by providing handholding guidance to clients via one on one advisory sessions, access to online pre-listing assessment tools and assistance in connecting potential clients to seasoned IPO advisors, the PSE said.

Among the LEAP partners to be featured in the event are BDO Capital and Investment Corp., BPI Capital Corp., China Bank Capital Corp., First Metro Investment Corp., Investment and Capital Corp. of the Philippines, PNB Capital and Investment Corp., RCBC Capital Corp., SB Capital Investment Corp. and Unicapital Inc.