The amount raised globally from initial public offerings this year is on track to set a record high, according to Ernst & Young, despite waves of market volatility which disrupted many planned listings.
Fueled by a booming Asian market - which has accounted for 64 percent of total IPO values - listings raised US$255.3 billion in the first 11 months of 2010, and by year-end are expected to top the 2007 peak of US$295 billion, the accountancy group said.
"Benefiting from relatively low interest rates in developed markets and abundant liquidity, global investors in the last 11 months have been avidly seeking exposure to the growth in Asia and other emerging markets," said Gregory Ericksen, global vice chair for strategic growth markets at E&Y.
Asian insurance companies and banks drove global IPO markets, he added. Focus by emerging market governments on modernizing infrastructure also supported activity in the industrial and materials sectors.
China, boosted by investor demand for its high-growth companies, dominated issuance, contributing almost half the total raised globally.
Despite volatile markets which have seen billions of dollars worth of IPOs pulled this year, Europe still saw a more than 500 percent increase on the amount of IPO funds raised versus the same period in 2009.
Although a renewed wave of market uncertainty, brought on by the Irish debt crisis, has knocked some recent listings off track, the general wider pickup in IPO market activity is expected to continue.
