IPOs in Asia face headwinds after bumper year

“Markets in 2022 are going to face a more normalised environment,” said William Smiley, co-head of equity capital markets at Goldman Sachs Group Inc in Asia

HONG KONG: After a bumper year of stock listings, Asian companies may find it hard to repeat the success in 2022 given the prospect of rising interest rates and China’s tightening grip on Big Tech.

Thanks to a blistering first half amid a global boom, initial public offerings (IPOs) in the region have reached US$190bil (RM801.69bil) so far this year, already a record and up 31% from the whole of 2020. But the momentum has weakened notably in recent months as Beijing escalated a regulatory assault on private enterprise, putting major deals on hold and injecting uncertainties into next year.