Healthy and transparent companies could still eschew difficult economic conditions by raising capital through stock market flotations.
This was heard at a Hanoi conference jointly held by the State Securities Commission and Hanoi Stock Exchange on November 14.
At the conference, deputy director of the State Securities Commission's Department of Issuance Management Bui Hoang Hai said securities offerings had slowed down in recent years after their 2007-08 peak.
SSC statistics showed that in the 2007-08 pre-crisis period, the total value of shares issued hit 100 trillion VND (4.76 billion USD), in comparison with the modest sum of 1.7 trillion VND (809.5 million USD) seen in the first seven months of this year.
Hai pointed out that market difficulties and share values slipping below their offering prices were among the main causes.
Many companies' registry documents for shares issuance also failed to meet requirements and had to be rejected, he added.
At the conference, many companies said now it was not the right time for listings or securities offerings, especially in light of many listed companies leaving stock exchanges due to losses or difficulties in raising capital.
Director of the Hanoi Stock Exchange Tran Van Dung agreed that cash flow problems remained for listed companies in current conditions.
However, healthy companies with transparent management had lots of opportunities to raise capital from securities offerings, Dung said.
He noted that Hanoi–listed companies raised a total of 34 trillion VND (1.62 billion USD) in the 2010-12 period, doubling the figure from 2005-09.
Hai added that the stock market had seen recent improvements as the economy began to show signs of a revival.
"It is time for unlisted enterprises to put their securities offerings into consideration," he said.
To create advantageous condition for companies, the SSC proposed applying restricted securities auctions to those which failed to fulfill offerings requirements.
Vice Director of the SSC's Inspection Department Vo Thanh Huong said Decree 108/2013/ND-CP, which came into force yesterday, would tighten punishments for slow listings.
Accordingly, joint stock companies which do not implement securities offerings within one year will be fined between 100-150 million VND (4,700-7,150 USD).
This aims to hasten joint stock company listings and enhance transparency.
Statistics showed there were 3,000 joint stock companies nationwide, however, less than 1,000 were listed.-VNA
