Market history · New issues ·
Arm's IPO reopens the market for large listings
Arm Holdings, the chip-design company controlled by SoftBank, listed on Nasdaq on 14 September 2023. It sold shares at $51, raising about $4.87 billion and valuing the company at about $55 billion, the largest offering of the year by far, according to Bloomberg and Fortune. Its shares rose 25% on their first day.
The deal came after almost two years in which large listings had been scarce, as higher interest rates and falling valuations had closed the market. Its success was taken as a sign that the window was reopening, particularly for companies linked to artificial intelligence.
Arm's listing also showed the role of a large controlling shareholder: a small share of the company was sold to public investors, which leaves the price sensitive to demand from a limited pool.
The takeaway
A well-received listing can mark the reopening of a market. A small free float can make the price swing more.
Sources
This is a retrospective about a past event, provided for general information. It is not investment advice, does not describe RockLake's positioning at the time, and past performance is not a guide to future performance. Read the risk warning.