Nasdaq plans China office to woo more IPOs http://www.reuters.com/article/bankingfinancial-SP/idUSSHA28444020070515
Tue May 15, 2007
By George Chen
SHANGHAI, May 15 (Reuters) - Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. (NDAQ.O: Quote, Profile, Research said it is considering setting up an office in China as the technology-savvy U.S. bourse seeks to list more Chinese firms.
Nasdaq is currently in talks with the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) to set up a representative office, probably in Beijing, Eric Landheer, head of Asia Pacific for Nasdaq, told Reuters on Tuesday.
"China is our most promising market at least in the near term," he said in an interview on the sidelines of a forum in Shanghai.
In the first quarter of this year alone, seven Chinese companies have gone public on Nasdaq, said Landheer, who took up his current London-based job in March.
Late last month, Beijing said it had drafted rules for foreign stock exchanges to establish representative offices in China, the world's fastest-growing major economy.
The CSRC, China's top stock market watchdog, is now seeking feedback from Nasdaq, where about 3,200 companies are listed, for the rules, Landheer said.
He declined to say when the desired Beijing office would be set up but said he expected a slew of Chinese listings. ''
Overseas exchanges including in Germany, Hong Kong and South Korea are intensifying their efforts to woo Chinese companies. "China is the strongest pipeline in Asia in terms of the number of potential listings," Landheer said, adding that India would become Nasdaq's second-biggest source of listings in Asia this year.
CHINESE, U.S. RIVALS
He declined to give an estimate on how many Chinese companies would list on Nasdaq this year. But he said the strong momentum in the first quarter would extend into the rest of the year.
Five Chinese firms listed on Nasdaq last year, raising a combined $534 million, according to market data firm Dealogic, down from seven companies raising $803 million in 2005.
China itself is seeking to keep its start-ups at home. Regulatory sources told Reuters in April that China was likely to launch a Nasdaq-style second board by 2008.
John Thain, chief executive of U.S. rival NYSE Group Inc. (NYX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, said in November the New York Stock Exchange was optimistic it could get permission to open a China office soon.
Landheer said Nasdaq had signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with the governments of Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces in eastern China, aimed at securing listings from the two Chinese economic powerhouses.
Nasdaq has also signed an MOU with the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the bigger of the country's two bourses, he said. But he declined to reveal what the MOU is about.
"We cooperate with local marketplaces rather than compete with them," he said.
"We encourage (Chinese) companies to look at all different types of investor bases, and we actually encourage them to develop local marketplaces," he added.
((Editing by Charlie Zhu; george.chen at reuters.com; Reuters Messaging: george.chen.reuters.com at reuters.net; +86 21 6104 1795; editing by Jane Baird))
Reuters 2007. All rights reserved.