A public offering without listing, often called a POWL deal or a POWL, is a form of
public equity offering by non-Japanese firms in the Japanese market, without the previously required simultaneous listing on a local exchange such as the
Tokyo Stock Exchange
The , abbreviated as Tosho () or TSE/TYO, is a stock exchange located in Tokyo, Japan.
The exchange is owned by Japan Exchange Group (JPX), a holding company that it also lists (), and operated by Tokyo Stock Exchange, Inc., a wholly owned sub ...
.
History
Prior to 1989, non-Japanese firms that wanted to sell equity into the Japanese market via
public offering
A public offering is the offering of securities of a company or a similar corporation to the public. Generally, the securities are to be publicly listed. In most jurisdictions, a public offering requires the issuing company to publish a prospectu ...
were required to list on a local Japanese stock exchange. Changes in regulations introduced in 1989 allowed this form of a public offering by foreign companies published, audited
financial statements
Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity.
Relevant financial information is presented in a structured manner and in a form which is easy to un ...
and with stock that is (or will be) listed on a foreign
stock exchange
A stock exchange, securities exchange, or bourse is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell securities, such as shares of stock, bonds and other financial instruments. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for ...
which satisfies the requirements of the Japanese
Financial Services Agency (FSA).
Notable POWL issuance
Equity offerings via POWL have been a common part of
Asia
Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
regional
public offerings since the early 1990s, with Japanese investors often taking more than 20% of the offering through this format.
ICBC and
Bank of China (Hong Kong) used this format to allow their domestic public offerings to spread into Japan.
See also
*
Alternative public offering
*
PIPE deal
References
{{Corporate finance and investment banking
Corporate finance
Stock market
Equity securities
Initial public offering