Malaysia to focus on larger IPOs in 2026, bourse chief says
A priority is to ‘build market vibrancy through various means’, he adds
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[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia’s stock exchange will focus on larger initial public offerings (IPOs) in 2026 as it looks to boost the pool and diversity of actively traded shares, the bourse chief said.
A priority for the bourse “is to build market vibrancy through various means, and one of that is by bringing larger IPOs to market”, Fad’l Mohamed, CEO of Bursa Malaysia, told Bloomberg TV’s Avril Hong.
It is experiencing “a strong pipeline of bigger IPOs” on the back of steady foreign inflows and strong economic growth, he said in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday (Feb 5).
He expects some large listings to come through in the technology space in 2026 and beyond, with “very strong” interest by foreign companies to list in Kuala Lumpur.
While the number of new listings remained robust, hitting 60 in 2025, most of the share sales involved companies with a market capitalisation of less than RM1 billion (S$322.9 million).
Malaysia has also seen the delisting of larger companies in recent years, including that of airport operator Malaysia Airports and plantation company FGV.
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The country’s strong domestic liquidity and institutional investor base will help anchor fundraising activities, giving local markets an advantage in attracting larger companies, Fad’l said.
Strong foreign interest in the Malaysian market will also bolster its appeal.
The country was a big beneficiary of foreign diversification into South-east Asia in 2025, amid interest in its data centres and advanced manufacturing, he said.
Global funds bought a net US$259 million of local shares on a net basis in January, after three months of outflows.
Foreign shareholding by market capitalisation improved to 19.2 per cent in January from 19 per cent in December, CIMB Securities said in a note this week.
Bursa Malaysia will also continue to build on its derivative products to bring more high net-worth retail investors to the space.
The bourse introduced futures on the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index in January, which Fad’l said is gaining traction. BLOOMBERG
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