A public offering is the process through which a company seeks to raise capital by selling securities, shares or equity or any other financial instruments to the public. When the company is doing so for the first time it is known as going public hence the term Initial Public Offering (IPO).
Should the company choose to do this by selling these securities to less than thirty five entities it is then referred to as a private placement. It is only considered so when it exceeds this figure.Should the company offer more securities at a future date the same rules apply and it may fall under the same definition depending on the fresh circumstances.
The sole purpose of this is to raise capital for any number of reasons. Usually business expansion is the major driver of this option but there are other reasons as well. The capital could be used to finance stock options for key members of the company in a bid to retain their services or bud morale. They could also be used to raise funds for mergers and acquisition of other companies. It might also be the prestige that is associated with such offerings.
It is both a cost effective and shrewd way of accessing capital without relinquishing ownership or control of the company. Other methods of raising capital could involve ceding some veto powers to say venture capitalists that are willing to invest in the business. This is usually too high a cost for companies that have the option of initial offering.
Sometimes a company can be forced into an IPO. This usually happens when a company meets certain conditions that are set by a national regulatory body handling Securities Exchange. Usually these conditions are linked with the capitalization or number of shareholders. Certain companies avoid IPOs since oversight as well as regulatory reportage that they need to go through add to their operating costs.
Usually when a company is contemplating this course of action they have to seek the approval of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). They also have to value the company and decide on how many shares they want to sell to the company. This value of the company as determined by the underwriters is known as the capitalization and will determine the initial offering share price.
Regulators may ask for extra information regarding the background of a company as well as the individual records of the directors. After that there is a period during which the regulator studies this information and, if approved, they decide on a date for the securities' sale to happen. Investment bankers then come up with the initial price. This price depends on the prevailing market conditions.
Finally on the day of the offer the securities are sold and hopefully the money is raised from the general population. When the number of shares demanded by the public exceeds the actual number of shares the offering is said to be oversubscribed. This public offering exercise can then be repeated should the company wish to arise more capital for whatever purpose.
Should the company choose to do this by selling these securities to less than thirty five entities it is then referred to as a private placement. It is only considered so when it exceeds this figure.Should the company offer more securities at a future date the same rules apply and it may fall under the same definition depending on the fresh circumstances.
The sole purpose of this is to raise capital for any number of reasons. Usually business expansion is the major driver of this option but there are other reasons as well. The capital could be used to finance stock options for key members of the company in a bid to retain their services or bud morale. They could also be used to raise funds for mergers and acquisition of other companies. It might also be the prestige that is associated with such offerings.
It is both a cost effective and shrewd way of accessing capital without relinquishing ownership or control of the company. Other methods of raising capital could involve ceding some veto powers to say venture capitalists that are willing to invest in the business. This is usually too high a cost for companies that have the option of initial offering.
Sometimes a company can be forced into an IPO. This usually happens when a company meets certain conditions that are set by a national regulatory body handling Securities Exchange. Usually these conditions are linked with the capitalization or number of shareholders. Certain companies avoid IPOs since oversight as well as regulatory reportage that they need to go through add to their operating costs.
Usually when a company is contemplating this course of action they have to seek the approval of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). They also have to value the company and decide on how many shares they want to sell to the company. This value of the company as determined by the underwriters is known as the capitalization and will determine the initial offering share price.
Regulators may ask for extra information regarding the background of a company as well as the individual records of the directors. After that there is a period during which the regulator studies this information and, if approved, they decide on a date for the securities' sale to happen. Investment bankers then come up with the initial price. This price depends on the prevailing market conditions.
Finally on the day of the offer the securities are sold and hopefully the money is raised from the general population. When the number of shares demanded by the public exceeds the actual number of shares the offering is said to be oversubscribed. This public offering exercise can then be repeated should the company wish to arise more capital for whatever purpose.
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