© Reuters. A logo is seen at the headquarters of agricultural chemical maker Syngenta in Basel, Switzerland January 30, 2020. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo - Chinese authorities nudged Swiss agrichemicals and seeds group Syngenta to withdraw its application for a long-delayed $9 billion IPO in Shanghai on concerns about the impact a sizeable new offering would have on a volatile market, four people said.
The company, however, did not secure a green light from China's securities regulator or top leaders at the State Council, a prerequisite for blockbuster IPOs to go ahead, said the four people familiar with the matter. The reason for Syngenta's IPO withdrawal and the way it was managed, which have not been reported previously, underscore how Beijing is prioritising boosting investor confidence in the secondary market over the launch of new equity offerings.
Large IPOs have often been cited by analysts as a reason for triggering the plunge of domestic stock markets, as large amounts of money are frozen when subscriptions are taken, sapping liquidity in the secondary market. During January-March 2024, proceeds raised via mainland China IPOs plunged 82% from a year earlier to just $2.4 billion, the smallest quarterly fundraising since the last quarter of 2018, LSEG data showed.