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Listing bridge to go live around mid-2026

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MAS appoints second batch of asset managers under equity

programme

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S$30 million package to help listed companies engage

investors

By Jun Yuan Yong and Yantoultra Ngui

SINGAPORE, Nov 19 (Reuters) - Singapore's central bank

said on Wednesday it would make it easier for companies to

establish dual listings on the Singapore Exchange and

the Nasdaq, aiming to boost the city-state's appeal as a hub for

high-growth businesses.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore said it would collaborate

with the SGX on a regulatory framework for prospectus disclosure

requirements that is comparable with U.S. standards, allowing

issuers to use a single set of offering documents.

The so-called dual listing bridge, expected to go live by

mid-2026, will target Asian companies with a market

capitalisation of at least S$2 billion ($1.5 billion) and global

ambitions.

SGX said in a separate statement that the bridge would simplify

the dual listing process for companies.

SINGAPORE STRIVING TO BOOST ITS EQUITY MARKET

MAS deputy chairman Chee Hong Tat said that companies with

operations, customers and investors in Asia could take advantage

of the arrangement to improve investor engagement, while tapping

deeper capital pools in the U.S. at the same time.

"I hope this will benefit a company that is trying to get

capital to be able to support its global ambitions," he said.

The initiative is part of a broader package to strengthen

Singapore's equities market, including a S$30 million "Value

Unlock" programme to help listed firms improve investor

engagement and shareholder returns.

MAS also named six asset managers, including BlackRock ( BLK )

and Lion Global Investors, to manage S$2.85 billion under its

Equity Market Development Programme, bringing total allocations

to nearly S$4 billion.

Other measures include plans to cut the minimum number of shares

investors must buy, modernise post-trade custody and enhance

market-making incentives to lower execution costs.

Singapore tops Southeast Asia's IPO market so far this year,

driven by major REIT listings and supported by market reforms

and lower rates, according to Deloitte.

MAS said in its release that initial public offering activity

had "rebounded significantly", with more than S$2 billion raised

involving a number of mid-cap and real estate investment trust

listings.

Clifford Lee, DBS Group managing director and global

head of investment banking, said the full-year total was likely

to top S$2.5 billion to S$2.6 billion and the figure could be

close to double that next year.

Upcoming listings include UltraGreen.ai Ltd, a medical imaging

and fluorescence-guided surgery company which is aiming to raise

$400 million, one of the largest non-REIT listings in the

city-state in recent years.

Vietnam-founded biotechnology firm Gene Solutions plans to raise

$100 million through a pre-IPO round and a potential listing as

soon as 2026 in either Hong Kong or Singapore, the company and

its lead investor Mekong Capital told Reuters.

($1 = 1.3025 Singapore dollars)