Shares in Thai Life Insurance Plc (TLI), Southeast Asia’s largest initial public offering (IPO) so far this year, closed slightly below the offer price on their first day of trading on Monday.
TLI initially rose 0.63% but ended the day 0.62% below the IPO price, with the broader Thai market up 0.49%
Data showed TLI was the most actively traded stock on the Bangkok stock exchange with over 639 million shares changing hands.
According to regulatory filings, TLI shares were priced at 16 baht, and the sale of 2.3 billion shares raised at least 34.4 billion baht (US$937 million), with about half coming from investors who bought before the deal went public.
The volume of capital markets deals, especially IPOs, has fallen sharply in 2022 in Asia as global financial markets remain roiled by geopolitics, rising interest rates and ongoing uncertainty caused by Chinese regulatory upheaval.
Analysts say Thai Life’s flat opening was a reflection of high valuation and broader market performance.
The flat debut is in line with Thailand’s listed insurance sector, which has weakened over the past month.
According to TLI’s financial accounts, its total revenue declined 0.69% in 2020 and grew just 1.49%, reaching 109.2 billion baht in 2021.
TLI has the third-largest market share among Thai insurers and competes with other market leaders – AIA, FWD and Muang Thai Life Assurance. It plans to use funds from the IPO to invest in digital transformation and strengthening partnerships.
According to Refinitiv data, the insurer’s IPO has been the largest equity capital market deal in Southeast Asia so far in 2022. There were $2.45 billion worth of IPOs in the region in the first half of 2022, compared with $6.1 billion in the same period last year. (NNT)
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