Turkey's Capital Markets Board (SPK) has proposed new regulations on public offerings aimed at lowering companies' costs and encouraging more sales on the Istanbul bourse. The proposals include scrapping the minimum stake companies must float that currently ranges from 5 to 25 percent, depending on the size of the firm's capital.
They also end a requirement that brokerages that manage offerings buy the shares that are unsold at the IPO, according to a draft of the new rules published on the state-run board's website late on Tuesday to solicit feedback from investors.
Turkish companies have staged only a handful of small IPOs this year, reflecting the global slowdown in the market. SPK Chairman Vedat Akgiray has pledged new regulations to make IPOs more attractive, including reducing the amount of time it takes to complete regulatory procedures, which can take up to six months. Akgiray has said the board expects "tens" of public offerings in 2010 as Turkey's $600 billion economy recovers from its deepest recession on record. The last major offering in Turkey was last year from landline monopoly Turk Telekom, the country's largest ever IPO in dollar terms, worth $1.9 billion.