Before assessing the benefits of launching an IPO, we must understand why a company goes public. When a company needs a new investment, it can sell the shares on a stock exchange. Under the initial public offering, the company sells its shares to public investors through the stock exchange. The corporation shares the part-ownership of the business with the public. You can say that it is the transition of a private company to a public one.
A company goes public to raise money from new public investors for future growth. A private shareholder might want to sell their stake to raise funds and augment its reputation in the market. Listing the shares in the market makes it easier for a new investor to buy company shares if you want to sell a couple of years from going public. The initial public offering makes it easier for the initial investors and the company founders to sell the market shares through a block trade.
There are several benefits of allowing the public to invest in your company. Some of these pros are lucrative enough to incentivize you to overlook the cons of the process. We have chosen the seven most important advantages of a company listing with the stock exchange.
Better payment for the employees –
The employees often receive better incentives after an IPO. It helps in boosting employee motivation and worker retention. Simultaneously, stock options are risky since a business faces several unfavorable conditions that can mar its success. It might be possible that the company never reaches the liquidity it wishes to go. However, a public company has to make its prospectus public for the investors, who can peruse the investment plans and decide to put their money on the company shares. A public company can easily sell its shares through the stock market.
Enhanced public image –
The public image of a company improves once the stocks go public. It turns from another private corporation to a reliable public company that garners more recognition from its suppliers. Moreover, banks prefer lending money to public corporations that have listed their stocks with the stock exchange rather than lending to closely held operations.
Chance to raise a respectable capital –
Most of the time, private companies will have difficulty raising equity from potential investors, venture capitalists, and big investors. There are quite a few big investors in the market, but none want to risk investing in a closely held firm. It results in the undervaluation of the company shares. Seeking investment from the public is a smarter move since going public provides a better opportunity of raising necessary funds.
Employee motivation –
The Indian Labour Laws have made it straightforward for private firms to issue stocks to their employees. Even though the process is a little cumbersome and complicated, the result is more than rewarding. Once your employees become the company’s part-owner, there is a higher chance of them performing better. Turing your business employees into part company shareholders will motivate them towards increased productivity.
Facilitation of acquisition and merger –
When a company has public listings, merging with new companies and acquiring new businesses is easier. The process becomes simpler once the owners list a corporation on the stock exchange. The valuation method becomes a lot easier since the process remains exclusively market-dependent.
Chances of liquidation –
Most companies have higher chances of liquidation after declaring an initial public offering. IPOs allow the invested venture capitalists to liquidate their shares or parts. After going public, there is a significant dilution of the corporate authority, and the new shareholders have an important say in the company’s management. Interestingly, it also means that the investors must shoulder some investment decisions and business operation responsibilities.
Listing with a stock exchange has several advantages, and this is one of them. When the company is private, there is no way for the business owner to find out their company values’ daily ups and downs. Once a company launches IPOs, the shares dictate the market valuation of the company. An entrepreneur can keep track of their market value while sitting at home, even when the value keeps changing throughout the day.
Although it seems lucrative to almost all companies operating privately now, and India has recorded the highest global number of IPOs in the first half of this year, it might not be the best decision for all private companies. It speaks strongly for the IPO investment trends in India and the opportunities awaiting private firms ready to brave the process’s technicalities. The January to June period in the Indian share market saw about 90 public companies raise close to 3.9 billion USD.
India has some of the strictest IPO laws and regulations in the world. The process is quite expensive and a bit daunting. Therefore, believing that all companies profit equally from the IPO trend would be fallacious. You should note that out of the 90 companies that went public and raked up billions; only 15 were listed with BSE and NSE, representing over 93% of the total proceeds. So, even if you have enough reason to believe that you are ready to go public, you need to speak with a litigation expert, a business accountant, an auditor, and other contemporary general business owners to recheck the viability of your ambition.