Signifying their preference for UK bourse, South Korea's Shinhan Financial Group and Australia's Macquarie Bank, are looking to London's equity market to raise capital for a South Korean toll-road investment fund, according to recent press reports.
Though still awaiting regulatory approval, the companies intend to list a KRW1,260 billion ($1.3 billion) investment fund on London and Seoul and reports suggest it is expected to raise $500 million.
Observers have emphasized the significance of listing in London as opposed to New York. The strict accounting rules ushered in with the introduction of the Sarbanes-Oxley law in the US have deterred public offerings from Asian issuers and given London the edge over New York.
Bloomberg highlighted this edge reporting that the amount raised by non-UK companies in London IPOs had surged 165-fold in the three years since the US tightened accounting rules, compared with a 31% rise in IPOs by overseas companies in the US.
Merrill Lynch is reportedly responsible for the overseas stock sale while Samsung Securities and Good Morning Shinhan Securities are to handle sales to Korean investors.