Regional bourses may soon be pressured to adopt dual-class shares

WITH the stock exchanges in Singapore and Hong Kong mulling over the listing of dual class shares (DCS), will other Asian bourses feel pressured to do the same?

Regional exchanges that have yet to contemplate the move could feel compelled to get on the DCS bandwagon if their counterparts push the "go" button. This comes despite vociferous opposition from critics who deem the move as a "race to the bottom", given concerns that it could disenfranchise public investors.

Competition has cranked up among stock exchanges as they wrestle to woo new listings to boost their profile, earnings and market liquidity. This is more so because companies seeking a suitable venue to take their business public have the world exchanges (versus the domestic market) as their stage, given the merits of accessing public capital in a foreign market.