More to IPOs than you think

Last week, the Irish Stock Exchange (ISE) launched its second IPO Ready programme which is effectively a boot camp for companies considering a listing on the stock market. 

A roadshow in Dublin, Galway and Cork was conducted to outline the contents of the programme and its virtues.

Alongside the ISE, itself, both Enterprise Ireland and the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) contributed to each event.

Enterprise Ireland, like the IDA, is an important enabler of entrepeneurship in Ireland. EI will be a partner in the IPO Ready process and can help assist company management teams to prepare for the opportunities and challenges that a stock market listing entails.

ISIF is effectively the sovereign wealth fund for Ireland and has firepower of about €8bn at its disposal. Over the past couple of years it has been carefully deploying capital alongside known investment experts to support private equity type funding for Irish companies. There is now a more pronounced message coming from ISIF that is especially interesting for companies seeking capital.

For those companies that undertake the IPO Ready programme, and follow through with a listing on the ISE, ISIF is willing to become an anchor investor. It is a major turbo charge to both the IPO process and the Irish Stock Exchange.

The reality in the world of capitalism is Ireland is competing for both finance and platforms on which to trade shares. The London Stock Exchange, NYSE and others are marketing their capabilities to Irish companies. In some countries local investors are co-investing in IPOs on their domestic markets.

‘Ireland Inc’ has to fight its corner in this environment. By combining the skills of the ISE with EI and ISIF corporate Ireland is not getting alphabet soup but rather a group of powerful backers to build international success from an Irish base.

Joe Gill is director of corporate broking with Goodbodys . His views are personal.