Nedlands company Advanced Share Registry Services Ltd has launched a $5 million initial public offering to expand the share registry business that operates under the same name.
Nedlands company Advanced Share Registry Services Ltd has launched a $5 million initial public offering to expand the share registry business that operates under the same name.
The company has issued a prospectus offering 12.5 million shares at an issue price of 40 cents each to raise a minimum subscription of $5 million.
It will use $2 million to purchase the privately owned Advanced Share Registry Services business from its founder, Kim Chong, who will continue as managing director of the listed company.
The company will also issue 2.5 million shares to the vendors of the existing business.
Upon completion of the deal, Mr Chong will be the major shareholder in the listed company with an interest in 25.7 million shares, equivalent to 64.7 per cent.
The $5 million capital raising will also be used to fund a targeted infrastructure and staffing upgrade which will capitalise on recent upgrades to the company's software platform.
About $159,000 will be used to fund the company's relocation costs to its new premises on Stirling Highway in Nedlands.
Established in May 1996 with a starting base of six clients, the Advanced Share Registry Services business has grown to service more than 170 listed and unlisted companies throughout Australia and overseas, including Singapore and Malaysia.
In the past financial year, it yielded a $2.4 million profit, which was a 42 per cent increase on the previous year, "primarily due to strong market conditions".
Chaired by stockbroker Simon Cato, the company's board believes that investors would be investing in a company with a history of solid growth and profit performance, an established client base and a strategy for expanding its services.
"The Advanced Share Registry Services business has been growing since inception, providing share registry services to listed companies in Australia and building a reputation as an efficient service provider, especially for smaller companies," Mr Cato wrote in the prospectus.
"After 10 years of internally generated growth, the directors believe that Advanced Share
Registry Services is ready to cement its position as a premier provider of share registry services to the small and medium sized companies and capitalise on its significant growth potential within the registry market in Australia."
The IPO is not underwritten.
The investigating accountant is Grant Thornton and the solicitor is Steinepreis Paganin.
