(SINGAPORE) Singapore Exchange's (SGX) junior board Sesdaq will be transformed into a new outfit on Dec 17 and renamed Catalist.

One for the album: From left, SGX chairman JY Pillay, UOB Group chairman Wee Cho Yaw and SGX chief executive officer Hsieh Fu Hua at the launch of Catalist yesterday

The new-look junior board aims to attract fast-growing companies from the region to list here. What's more, Catalist has decided to do away with any limits on the market value of new issues that can list on it. Previously, it had thought of imposing an initial upper limit of $150 million.

SGX, which had first announced plans in May to revamp Sesdaq, yesterday unveiled the new board and the rules that will govern it.

Under the new regime, approved sponsors or professional financial advisers will be responsible for vetting new listings and supervising them thereafter. The first batch of sponsors will be revealed in January although the board will officially be in business from Dec 17.

SGX chief executive officer Hsieh Fu Hua said that Catalist hopes to compete with London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM) for Asian listings, and that the cost of listing on Catalist will be 30 per cent less than that on AIM.

Initial listing fees on the new board will be set at a minimum of $30,000 and a maximum of $100,000.

Annual listing fees will be set at a minimum of $15,000 and capped at $50,000. It will take about six weeks to list on the new board, compared to the current 17 weeks that it takes to list on Sesdaq.

SGX said yesterday that qualified financial advisers can apply to be sponsors starting from Dec 17.

However, full sponsors who help issuers to list and continue to advise them thereafter must have a base capital of $500,000 and experience as a lead issue manager. Continuing sponsors who advise companies on their listing obligations must have a base capital of $250,000 and experience as a corporate finance or compliance adviser.

Mr Hsieh said the exchange wants to keep the first batch of sponsors 'pretty tight', and that the exchange wants to 'work with the better ones first'.

SGX has also appointed a panel of market experts to advise it on the admission of sponsors.

With the new rules, companies will find it easier to raise money. On Catalist, they will have a greater mandate to issue more new shares and have more leeway to make acquisitions or disposals.

While issuers do not have to produce a prospectus, they have to produce an offer document which includes statements from directors and the sponsor about the sufficiency of their working capital for 12 months.

SGX said yesterday that Reits and business trusts will not be allowed to list on the new board.

And companies in the biosciences and resource exploration industries that are listed on Catalist will have to comply with a more stringent set of rules, which will be revealed by the second half of next year.

'We believe that the nature of these industries requires things more than the ordinary manufacturing or trading companies so that investors can make an informed judgment,' SGX head of listings Lawrence Wong said.

Catalist will be open for new listings in January.

The 160 companies currently listed on Sesdaq will continue to be governed by the existing rules even after they migrate to Catalist. They will have at least two years to comply with the changes.

Three companies have been approved to be listed on new board after Dec 17. They, too, will follow the existing rules - just like other Sesdaq companies - and get the same transitional period to comply with the changes.

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