Time to have a new board for tech startups
SOME Catalist-listed companies are having to turn to small crowd-lending websites to get enough funds to survive. Others are actually so large that they qualify for the mainboard, yet presumably do not want to list there because of the heavier compliance burden.
With the Catalist board becoming increasingly a catch-all, and with the equity crowdfunding scene here so fragmented, it is an opportune time for the Singapore Exchange (SGX) to revisit old plans of entering the early-stage startup space. This could be by way of a dedicated third board with lighter rules than the Catalist but necessarily higher requirements for investor sophistication.
And if that does not pan out for reasons such as reputational risk, another possibility would be for Singapore to bring in a well-known international bourse operator willing to open a second exchange here focused on tech startups at various stages of development.
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Companies & Markets
Former PAP MP, minister of state retire as company directors
US: Wall St opens higher
Air China orders homegrown C919s in challenge to jet duopoly
HCA beats first-quarter profit estimates on higher patient admissions
F&B operator YKGI to exclusively operate Chicha San Chen in Macau for next eight years
LMIRT Q1 net property income dips 3.1% to S$30 million on higher expenses