SINGAPORE: Singapore-listed medical technology company UltraGreen.ai’s shares have more than halved since its listing nine months ago, testing the Singapore Exchange’s (SGX) push to attract a greater variety of initial public offerings (IPOs) and underscoring the need for investors to understand the specialised risks before buying into unfamiliar businesses.
The counter last traded at 68.5 US cents on Aug 31, less than half its value when it commenced trading on the SGX mainboard at US$1.45 on Dec 3, 2025.
UltraGreen.ai is SGX’s largest non-real estate investment trust (REIT) listing in eight years. Its US$400mil (S$509mil) IPO was also seen as a key step in the bourse’s efforts to draw a greater variety of firms beyond banks and REITs.
Against this backdrop, UltraGreen.ai’s share-price plunge could be an early test of SGX’s push to attract firms in the “new economy”, comprising technology, biotechnology and healthcare companies.
It also puts the market’s disclosure regime and companies’ investor relations under scrutiny: Are existing requirements sufficient for less familiar and fast-evolving sectors, or do such companies need to provide investors with clearer and frequent explanations of their unique risks?
Responding to queries from The Straits Times, an SGX spokesperson said that while it does not comment on individual stocks, it is important not to extrapolate the performance of any single company to an entire sector.
“Building a vibrant new-economy sector and ecosystem is a long-term effort requiring many elements to come together, including research coverage, active investor participation, as well as regular and transparent investor engagement and education.”
UltraGreen.ai develops a fluorescent dye called indocyanine green (ICG) that is used by surgeons to monitor blood flow, tissue structures and tumours under near-infrared light.
ICG is most highly sought after for gastrointestinal, oncological and gallbladder surgery.
The company has regulatory approvals to sell ICG in 46 countries, with the Americas making up 75% of its total revenue amounting to US$87.2mil, according to its results for the first half of 2026 (1H26) ended June 30.
UltraGreen.ai reportedly also controls about 83% of the US market for ICG.
ICG technology, however, is not patented in the United States, which means other companies can still obtain approval to legally manufacture and market generic versions.
To gain approval, these products must demonstrate that they meet the reference standard set by UltraGreen.ai under US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations. The market, therefore, saw Zydus Lifesciences’ FDA approval for an ICG product in August as a significant threat to UltraGreen.ai’s US dominance, and shares of the company plunged.
Zydus now has a 180-day exclusivity period during which the FDA will not approve any other generic applications for an ICG product.
However, if it does not commercially market its ICG product within 75 days of receiving its FDA approval on Aug 4, its 180-day exclusivity period would be completely forfeited.
The regulatory framework aims to promote competition and address market failures in the pharmaceutical industry, where a sole manufacturer may otherwise wield significant control over prices and supply.
UltraGreen.ai, for example, has raised the prices of its ICG product three times since 2023.
While new-economy sectors such as biotechnology and medical technology are expected to drive SGX’s future growth, investors are still learning how their business models work and what determines their growth and risks, analysts noted.
Specialised biotech and medtech companies can be particularly complex, requiring investors to consider a wide range of scientific, clinical and commercial factors.
“While this learning curve may weigh on investors in the short term, it is a necessary hurdle to cross if the Singapore market wishes to diversify beyond banks and REITs,” said Amova Asset Management senior equity analyst Kathy Ng.
To help investors have a better understanding of their business, listed new-economy companies should also improve their communication and disclosure to shareholders.
Ng noted that the management could have addressed the potential US competition arising from the recent FDA approval more proactively, rather than leaving investors to learn about it through research reports and the media.
For example, its 1H26 earnings report was a “timely opportunity” to address these concerns and “control the narrative by framing the competitive landscape, communicating potential implications of generic entry, and setting appropriate investor expectations around this risk”.
If UltraGreen.ai had done so earlier, its share-price reaction may not have been so adverse, Ng said.
In a statement to calm the market on Aug 24, UltraGreen.ai’s chief executive Ravinder Sajwan said the Zydus development has yet to pose a major concern to the business.
“FDA approval is an important regulatory milestone, but does not, in itself, indicate commercial launch, customer adoption or market penetration.” — The Straits Times/ANN
