TOTAL capital raised from listed companies' share offerings reached P15.25 billion as of May 15, data from the Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) showed.
From January to March, P4.89 billion was raised from two follow-on offerings — by Century Properties Group (P2 billion) and A Brown Co. (P1.44 billion) — and one private placement.
A month later, property developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. generated P4.28 billion, also from a follow-on offering.
Last week, OceanaGold Philippines Inc. successfully raised P6.08 billion from the country's first initial public offering (IPO) for the year and the first by a mining firm in over a decade.
The PSE expects around P29.5 billion to be raised from forthcoming listings, including the P7.98-billion and P580-million IPOs of Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. and NextGen Energy Corp., respectively.
At the end of this month, Aboitiz-led Union Bank of the Philippines is looking to raise as much as P10 billion through its stock rights offering.
Other upcoming follow-on offerings include those of Jollibee Foods Corp. (P8 billion) and Arthaland Corp. (P3 billion).
PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Monzon has said that the bourse is maintaining a capital-raising target of P175 billion this year along with at least six IPOs.
Despite geopolitical concerns and macroeconomic headwinds, Monzon has expressed optimism that the capital market would "eventually" regain ground.
In 2023, total capital raised from primary and secondary shares reached P140.95 billion, up 27.8 percent from the P110.29 billion raised in the previous year.
The stock exchange recorded three IPOs, five follow-on offerings, five stock rights offerings and 11 private placements last year.
To encourage more firms to tap the capital market, the stock exchange in February launched an IPO campaign that featured the IPO journey of seven publicly listed companies.
In the first quarter of 2024, the PSE saw its earnings grow 19.3 percent to P242.38 million from P203.16 million in the same period last year, amid higher interest income and mark-to-market gains on financial assets.
Revenues, on the other hand, were 7.6 percent lower at P353.34 million from P382.29 as trading-related revenues dropped during the quarter.
"To improve this revenue stream, [the] PSE continues to expand its efforts to encourage more listings," the bourse said.