The pace of global initial public offerings (IPO) slowed down from previous frenzy in the third quarter of 2021, but the number of listings in the first nine months of this year was still the highest since the dotcom bubble in 2000, according to Refinitiv.
Total IPO financing in the third quarter of this year was about $94.6 billion, down 26.3 per cent from the second quarter, due to a slowdown in IPO activity this summer and tighter scrutiny of foreign listings in the US.
So far this year, there have been more than 2000 IPO cases worldwide, raising a record $421 billion, with private companies scrambling to reach soaring valuations of listed companies. This figure is more than double that of the same period last year.
The figure includes 486 special purpose buyout companies (SPAC) that went public in the first nine months of this year, raising a total of $127.7 billion.
Goldman Sachs GroupDavid Ludwig, global head of equity capital markets for the group, said, "after SPAC IPO activity reached a record level in the first quarter, there was a necessary pause in the market. However, we see early signs that the market is starting to normalize and open up to the right issuers. "
High-profile IPO in the third quarter included trading app Robinhood Markets (HOOD.US), which raised $2.1 billion on the New York Stock Exchange, and South Korean software company Krafton, which raised more than $3.7 billion on the Korean Stock Exchange.
The largest IPO so far this year is the $5.4 billion IPO of Kuaishou Technology, a Chinese online video company backed by Tencent.
Technology listings remain the darling of investors, although valuations have come under closer scrutiny. But more industries are emerging in the stock market. In Europe, Taylor Swift's record company Universal Records Amsterdam Stock Exchange launched the much-anticipated IPO, making it the most valuable company to list on the continent this year.
The market expects Volvo Cars to also have an IPO, while DaimlerIts truck division is expected to go public to diversify offerings to stock market investors.
Ludwig said IPO activity was likely to pick up in the fourth quarter. "the backlog of IPO across the industry and the region is very strong," he said.