First Indian firm set to list on Singapore bourse

By siliconindia   |   Friday, 02 July 2004, 19:30 IST
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SINGAPORE: After a four-year effort, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) is set to see the first Indian firm list on the city state's bourse, with a chemical company maker saying it had taken the first steps toward a share issue. Meghmani Organics Ltd said in a statement it lodged a preliminary prospectus with the financial industry regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, for a listing on the main board of the SGX. "We are positive that a listing on SGX, one of the most internationalised exchanges in Asia, will be an important asset in our company's expansion plans and enhance our corporate image," said Meghmani managing director Ashish Soparkar. The Singapore bourse has been among the world's most active exchanges for new share offers this year with 20 new firms listed in the three months ended March 2004, mainly from China. New listings in the second quarter are running at a similar pace. The exchange has been trying to get Indian companies to list in the city state for some time but with no luck with some Indian software and financial sector firms choosing to list on US exchanges. Meghmani, which has factories in Gujarat, makes organic pigment products used in applications such as printing inks, plastics, paints, textiles, leather and rubber. It also produces commonly used pesticides. "Meghmani is poised to benefit from the expected increase in outsourcing activity by pigment and pesticide manufacturers in developed countries who are looking to take advantage of lower production and infrastructure costs in India," the firm said. For the year ended March 2003, the firm posted a profit before tax of S$10.1 million ($5.88 million) on revenue of S$73.7 million, it said. For the eight months ended November 30, 2003, profit before tax was S$8.84 million on revenue of S$57 million. PricewaterhouseCoopers Corporate Finance Pte Ltd is the manager while DBS Bank is the underwriter and placement agent for Meghmani's public offering, the statement said.

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