A total of 120 million shares of SUN Insurance (SUN) made their debut on the South Pacific Stock Exchange (SPX) yesterday, marking the company as the 20th listed security on the exchange. This event ends a five-year period without new listings, providing an additional investment option for the people of Fiji.
On its first trading day, SUN shares closed at $1.20, reflecting a 15-cent increase from its Initial Public Offering (IPO) price of $1.05, which brought its market capitalization to $144 million. The overall market capitalization of SPX rose to $3.57 billion, up from $3.42 billion the previous day.
During the trading session, a total of 9,869 SUN shares were exchanged. The company had launched its IPO, offering seven million shares at $1.05 each, and successfully attracted over 500 local investors, leading to an early closure of the offer due to oversubscription.
Before the IPO, a private placement raised $23 million and drew interest from new institutional investors. The successful listing of SUN is seen as a pivotal moment for Fiji’s capital markets.
Reserve Bank of Fiji governor Ariff Ali emphasized the significance of the event, stating, “Today is a significant progress for our economy.” He noted that SUN’s listing reflects a strong investor appetite in the growing capital market.
In addition to adhering to SPX regulations, SUN is also regulated by the Reserve Bank of Fiji as a licensed insurance firm. Ali highlighted the listing as a way to pursue development opportunities and improve the company’s competitiveness, ultimately benefiting shareholders and investors.
SPX chairman Nitin Gandhi remarked that the listing of SUN was a milestone for the exchange. He expressed optimism about the potential for more listings in the next one to two years. The inclusion of SUN is expected to enhance the market capitalization by around four percent and offer a more diverse range of investment opportunities within the insurance sector.
The listing was officiated by President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere and attended by Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism Viliame Gavoka, as well as Assistant Minister of Finance Esrom Immanuel.