KUALA LUMPUR: Integrated circuit (IC) designer Oppstar Bhd made an impressive debut on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia, opening at RM2.05, a 225.4% premium over its initial public offering (IPO) price of 63 sen per share.
Oppstar has raised RM104.25 million from the IPO via the issuance of 165.48 million new ordinary shares.
The company plans to use RM50 million from the proceeds to expand its workforce and RM25 million to establish new offices both locally and regionally.
By 2025, Oppstar aims to increase its current total workforce of engineers and technicians from 220 to 500. This expansion will enable the company to compete for more orders and tap into larger potential customers while providing flexibility in managing resources and timely service delivery.
Meanwhile, RM12 million will go towards research and development expenditure, along with RM12.65 million for working capital. The remaining RM4.6 million will be allocated for its listing-related expenses.
Executive director/CEO Ng Meng Thai said that its vision for the company is to show global players that Malaysia is not only known for its back-end semiconductor value chain, but also has the capability to go into front-end semiconductor IC design.
“Besides Malaysia, we are now serving clients in countries such as China, Japan, Singapore, as well as the US. As we gradually progress, we continually ask ourselves what we can do to expand our business and continue to build up Malaysia’s profile in the front-end semiconductor space. This was where the rationale to go for a listing came about leading up to this today,” he told a media conference after the listing ceremony today.
In addition, he stated that the reason it has decided to list on the exchange is to enable the company to attract and develop future talent, thereby allowing it to compete with other multinational companies and ultimately strengthening Malaysia’s front-end semiconductor ecosystem.
Affin Hwang Investment Bank Bhd is the principal adviser, sponsor, sole placement agent and sole underwriter for the initial public offering exercise.
