The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) said yesterday that it had showcased a strong growth trajectory in capital raised by Sri Lankan corporates of all scales during the first seven months of 2021. 

It said Sri Lankan corporates are increasingly recognising the exchange as a platform to achieve greater financial freedom, improved access to capital, enhanced global profile, access to liquidity and an attractive proposition to tap into global capital. 

To date, the CSE has facilitated 12 new listings, including seven debt IPOs with a value of Rs. 47.29 billion, four equity IPOs with a value of Rs. 7.49 billion and one SPO with a value of Rs. 3.5 billion. 

This is the highest number of equity IPOs that the CSE has facilitated since 2014 and the largest in cumulative value since 2011. 

In total, the stock market has facilitated the raising of Rs. 77.30 billion. This includes Rs. 10.99 billion raised by equity IPOs and the SPO, Rs. 47.29 billion raised by debt IPOs, Rs. 16.56 billion raised by Rights Issues and Rs. 2.46 billion raised by private placements.

The five equity Initial and Secondary public issues held during the year so far include Windforce PLC, Chrissworld Ltd., Prime Lands Residencies PLC, JAT Holdings Ltd., and Sanasa Development Bank, all of which were launched with successful Public Issues. The first Empower Board listing, Chrissworld Ltd., debuted trading successfully, which is an encouraging start for further small and medium enterprise (SME) listings.

With State institutions such as Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) opting to finance their capital requirements through the Sri Lankan stock market, the CSE has established the confidence of both private and State institutions as an effective and efficient source for capital raising.

Commenting on the positive development, CSE Chief Executive Officer Rajeeva Bandaranaike said: “As businesses adopt and expand in the current environment, facilitating funding avenues is a primary priority in building a resilient economy in Sri Lanka. In fulfilling this requirement, the stock exchange has established itself as a viable option that can be leveraged by corporates as an alternate to traditional capital raising methods.

“Together with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka, the stockbroker community, investment banks, other market intermediaries and technology providers, we have actively engaged to drive both investor participation and issuer participation by introducing new rules and processes and improving accessibility and market infrastructure.” 

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