Singapore Central Bank Plans Changes to Regulations, Law for SGX-Nasdaq Dual Listings

By Amanda Lee and Megan Cheah

SINGAPORE--Singapore's central bank aims to amend a law and draft regulations for companies seeking dual listings on Singapore's stock exchange and the U.S.'s Nasdaq, following plans to streamline the process.

The regulator's plan comes after Singapore Exchange and Nasdaq said in November that they planned to simplify the process for companies to list on both exchanges under the city-state's equity market development program, which introduced measures to boost trading.

Under this plan, companies that are planning dual listings and meet certain requirements are allowed to use a single set of offer documents. The needs of both exchanges could be met by having the prospectus for the Singapore listing contain information that is already mandatory for listing in the U.S., the Monetary Authority of Singapore said Friday.

The MAS also aims to align the initial public offering timelines between the U.S. and Singapore by shortening the registration process in the city-state.

"The regulations will also include safe harbor provisions in line with practices in the U.S. market to facilitate the publishing of forward-looking statements, the undertaking of share repurchases and the execution of pre-determined trades," MAS said.

A safe harbor is a legal defense to liability, provided that a specific set of conditions are met, according to the central bank.

Companies could also be allowed to engage retail investors earlier in the IPO process to support the IPO's bookbuilding efforts, the MAS proposed.

The final decision on all listings and prospectus registrations in Singapore will be made by MAS and Singapore Exchange, said the central bank.

Meanwhile, the exchange operator, also known as SGX, is seeking to tweak its listing rulebook for the global listing board that will be set up for dual-listed companies.

Some proposed rules include requiring prospective companies to have a market capitalization of 2 billion Singapore dollars, equivalent to US$1.56 billion, and an effective local interface--such as an independent director who is a Singapore resident, said SGX.

The global listing board will provide "a direct and harmonized pathway for companies to simultaneously list and access capital and liquidity across North America and Asia," SGX said.

Singapore's equity market review, which was completed late last year, aimed to encourage trading activity in local equities amid a dearth of new listings and thin trading.

Write to Amanda Lee at [e-mail] and Megan Cheah at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

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