Ayondo needs to turn hype into results to live up to its promise

IT has been slightly over three months since the initial public offer (IPO) of Europe-based Ayondo Ltd, the first loss-making fintech to make its debut on the Singapore Exchange (SGX). But SGX's maiden pure-play fintech IPO performance appears struggling to live up to its hype.

The provider of "innovative trading and investment solutions through online platforms" was listed on Catalist on March 26 at 26 Singapore cents a share. After hitting a high of 27.5 Singapore cents on March 27, its shares tumbled to 7.2 Singapore cents on June 26. Today, they are hovering at seven to eight Singapore cents, which means that the company has shed more than 70 per cent of its market value since its IPO. In contrast, the FTSE ST Catalist Index has shed 12 per cent over the same period.

Even for longer-term investors who had put money into the stock, betting on the company's unique proposition, management team and prospects, Ayondo's rapidly shrinking market value - from S$130 million to S$35 million in a span of three months - is certainly nerve-wrecking.