IPO Deal Volume Down 60% Compared to ’21

IPOs haven’t been doing so well – deal volume is down 60% compared to the same time last year, Bloomberg writes.

Around the world, there’s $26.7 billion worth of IPOs that have priced.

There are increasingly more pulled deals as well.

The problem comes somewhat from the specter of interest rate hikes on the horizon. Then there’s the slower economic growth and geopolitical tensions, which have set global equities on a path to have their worst month since the beginning of the pandemic.

And Bloomberg says the frothier tech and growth stocks in recent IPOs have been particularly vulnerable to the goings on.

The report goes into detail on some regional specifics, with New York seeing around nine firms call off their IPOs. That includes Justworks, the human research platform, along with Four Springs Capital Trust.

In addition, the blank-check fever has been slowing down there. There were $4 billion worth of SPAC listings dropped in January alone.

Meanwhile, in Europe, the startup WeTransfer did away with its Amsterdam offering last week due to lack of investor demand. And German drug maker Cheplapharm Arzneimittel has postponed its listing, Bloomberg writes.

“It’s a really tough environment for new listings right now,” said Andreas Bernstorff, head of European equity capital markets at BNP Paribas SA. “Many investors are grappling with their portfolios turning negative and the rotation into value is depressing appetite for the growth stocks that dominated the IPO market last year.”

Meanwhile, an investigation in China has delayed over 60 IPOs, PYMNTS wrote. That number included Deutsche Bank’s Chinese securities ventures.

Read more: China Investigation Triggers Delay in 60+ IPOs

The delay came after the regulators wanted to look into the law firms and underwriters behind them.

PYMNTS wrote that every one of the companies being looked into involved one or more of three companies being investigated by securities regulators: Zhong De Securities Co. (a joint venture between Shanxi Securities and Deutsch Bank), accountancy firm SineWing and law firm King&Wood Mallesons.