Grab Holdings, Southeast Asia’s ride-hailing-to-delivery, is considering secondary listing in its home market of Singapore after completing a Nasdaq listing via $ 40 billion SPAC merger, three sources say with the case.
A listing on Singapore Exchange (SGXL.SI) would allow Grab to have an investor base close to where its regional operations are located, the people said, potentially allowing easier access for its customers, drivers and trading partners to buy its shares. to trade.
Grab, a household name in Southeast Asia, is in the early stages of considering a secondary city-state entry, the sources said, who declined to be identified because they had no authority to speak on the matter.
Grab and SGX declined to comment on the listing plans.
“For the right issuer, a secondary listing could be a good move. You can get the best of both worlds,” said Raymond Tong, capital markets and M&A partner at law firm Rajah & Tann Singapore.
“If your home markets are in this region, a Singapore listing can help you tap into a different pool of investors as there are many family offices and funds located in Singapore,” said Tong.
The potential listing plans for Singapore come after Grab struck a $ 40 billion merger with Altimeter Growth Corp. this week. (AGC.O), a special purpose acquisition (SPAC) company that set a record for the world’s largest SPAC deal. read more
As part of the transaction, Grab will raise $ 4 billion from investors including BlackRock (BLK.N), Temasek Holdings, Fidelity International, Permodalan Nasional Bhd in Malaysia and some of Indonesia’s wealthiest family groups.
Grab, which started as a taxi company in 2012, now operates in eight countries and more than 400 cities and has grown into food and grocery delivery, as well as digital payments. Last year, it won a digital banking license in Singapore.
It was not clear how much Grab would want to achieve in a secondary listing, with financial terms and time frame still in the early stages of consideration, the sources said.
The company with the highest valuation on the Singapore stock exchange is the bank DBS Group Ltd (DBSM.SI), currently worth approximately S $ 74 billion ($ 55.4 billion) by capitalization.
One source said that while Grab has ample cash reserves and could end up only raising a small amount on SGX, a listing would mean a big win for the exchange.
SGX has mainly only seen large IPOs from real estate investment funds. Hindered by a small group of private investors in the city-state, it struggled with low liquidity and valuations, forcing a wave of delistings and discouraging large listings of regional high-growth companies as well.
However, the Hong Kong stock exchange has benefited from diplomatic and political tensions between the United States and China, which have led many Chinese companies to seek secondary listings in Hong Kong. Global fund managers have also switched Chinese holdings from Wall Street to Hong Kong. read more
SGX has taken many steps in recent years to expand its stock market, and under Chief Executive Loh Boon Chye, appointed six years ago, it has taken over companies to transform itself into a multi-asset exchange.
Over the past three years, SGX listed companies have raised about four times more money in the secondary market than through primary fundraising.
Currently, there are 28 companies with a secondary listing on SGX, including the Malaysian IHH Healthcare Bhd (IHHH.KL) and Top Glove Corp Bhd (TPGC.KL) and the Hong Kong conglomerate Jardine Matheson Holdings (JARD.SI).
Last year, AMTD International became the first NYSE-listed company to list on SGX. It was also the first to benefit from a two-class share structure in Singapore.
($ 1 = 1.3351 Singapore dollars)
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