IPO in Taiwan: Why It Matters To Southeast Asia
Dear Founders and Investors,
In this networking event, we have 2 anchor speakers to each share a short session:
[1] Taiwan Stock Exchange will share the regulatory support to the IPO process.
[2] 91APP (Shopify in Taiwan, US$350M mkt cap) will share their experience listing as a software/internet company.
[3] Patec (Auto parts and Robotics in Singapore, US$200M mkt cap) will share their experience choosing the Taiwan market to go IPO.
We sincerely invite you to join this session and the networking hour with also other 10-15 startups from Taiwan.
///// Since many people ask, below we provides some key factors that make Taiwan an excellent stock market for IPOs.
🚀 Super Active Market: Taiwan boasts one of the most active securities markets in the Asia-Pacific region with a market capitalization exceeding US$2.3 trillion.
💧 High Liquidity: Daily trading turnover hits a whopping US$11.5 billion, outshining many SEA markets. Known for tech IPOs, it boosts investor confidence and ensures greater liquidity.
📊 Impressive PE Ratios: New companies enjoy an average P/E ratio of 26x, higher than JP, HK, SG, and ID.
🤝 Welcome foreign companies: Taiwan's stock market actively welcomes international startups, with foreign companies making up over 10% of all listed companies.
Taiwan serves as a profit center with high technology adoption, matured infrastructure, and balanced demographics, offering significant growth potential. Taiwan's contribution of 30% to Sea Group's 2017 IPO revenue highlights this potential. Another example is Uber's acquisition of Taiwan’s foodpanda for $950 million in May 2024 to strengthen its regional position, as Foodpanda Taiwan had already exhibited strong unit economics and reached break-even.
Secondly, startups can leverage Taiwan's top-tier tech talent, as it ranks 1st globally in R&D personnel per capita, with 8,930 researchers per million people, compared to the US's 4,431. Major tech players like Google and Microsoft have significant R&D centers here, with Google employing over 2,000 engineers and Microsoft setting up its first global AI R&D center. Startups like ShopBack also thrive in this R&D hub.
Lastly, Taiwan's government supports international startup IPOs, even for companies without a strong local presence. Thus, pursuing an IPO in Taiwan later on is an excellent choice, as it facilitates greater capital influx and access to a dynamic market with strong investor confidence, supporting regional growth strategies.