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Why go public?<br />

1.1 Advantages of conducting an IPO<br />

J.P. Morgan (Investment Banking)<br />

When considering an initial public offering<br />

(IPO), a company should evaluate the<br />

associated pros and cons, as well as<br />

the motivations for going public. This<br />

evaluation process is best conducted in<br />

conjunction with an investment bank,<br />

which can assist the company in working<br />

through the salient issues. There are<br />

numerous advantages to going public, the<br />

most pertinent of which are detailed below.<br />

(a) Access to capital<br />

The most common reasons for going public<br />

are to raise primary capital to provide the<br />

company with working capital to fund<br />

organic growth, to repay debt or to fund<br />

acquisitions. Further direct results include<br />

the following:<br />

• Once the company is public, it has<br />

access to an entirely new, deep and<br />

liquid source of capital for any future<br />

needs it may have.<br />

• Being publicly traded adds equity<br />

to the company’s capital-raising<br />

toolkit, enabling the company to<br />

achieve and maintain an optimal<br />

capital structure.<br />

• Following the IPO, the company will<br />

be able to tap the equity markets via<br />

follow-on offerings of primary and/<br />

or secondary shares, or a mix thereof.<br />

After the company has been public for<br />

one year, it will be eligible to access the<br />

equity capital markets on demand via a<br />

shelf registration statement.<br />

(b) Liquidity event<br />

Listing on the NYSE has numerous<br />

benefits, not only for the company but<br />

also for its shareholders. The IPO can be<br />

structured such that existing owners of<br />

the company can sell down their position<br />

and receive proceeds for their shares. In<br />

addition, once the company is public, the<br />

existing owners have a public marketplace<br />

through which they can monetize their<br />

holdings in a straightforward and orderly<br />

fashion.<br />

(c) Branding event and prestige<br />

By listing on the NYSE, the company will<br />

receive worldwide media coverage through<br />

the financial markets, which provide<br />

constant live coverage on publicly traded<br />

companies. In addition, research analysts<br />

at broker-dealers will begin to write<br />

reports on the stock and the company, thus<br />

raising the profile of the company. Broader<br />

coverage across various sources will likely<br />

enhance the company’s visibility, increase<br />

its stature with actual and potential<br />

customers and suppliers and thus help<br />

it grow its market share and competitive<br />

position.<br />

(d) Public currency for acquisitions<br />

Once the company is public, it can use its<br />

publicly tradable common stock in whole<br />

or in part to acquire other public or private<br />

companies in conjunction with, or instead<br />

of, raising additional capital. Publicly<br />

tradable stock is clearly more attractive to<br />

target shareholders than illiquid private<br />

company stock.<br />

(e) Enhanced benefits for current<br />

employees<br />

Stock-based compensation incentives<br />

align employees’ interests with those<br />

of the company. By allowing employees<br />

to benefit alongside the company’s<br />

financial success, these programs increase<br />

productivity and loyalty to the company<br />

and serve as a key selling mechanism<br />

when attracting top talent. Furthermore,<br />

issuing equity-based compensation<br />

will allow the company to attract top<br />

talent without incurring additional<br />

cash expenses. Being a public company<br />

provides employees with the ability to<br />

monetize the value of their stock-based<br />

compensation, whether it is options or<br />

restricted stock.<br />

1.2 Potential issues<br />

J.P. Morgan (Investment Banking)<br />

While there are numerous advantages<br />

to going public, there are also a few<br />

considerations that the company, its<br />

management and shareholders should<br />

evaluate prior to embarking on the<br />

IPO process. The most successful<br />

companies with the smoothest IPO<br />

processes are those that fully weigh these<br />

considerations before embarking on an<br />

IPO and that begin making the necessary<br />

preparations months, if not years,<br />

beforehand.<br />

(a) Loss of privacy and flexibility<br />

In order to comply with securities laws,<br />

public companies must disclose various<br />

forms of potentially sensitive information<br />

publicly, which regulatory agencies, as well<br />

as competitors, can then access. Private<br />

companies can operate without disclosing<br />

proprietary information in a public forum.<br />

In addition, the focus of research analysts<br />

and the investor community on quarterly<br />

results and stock price performance<br />

may have the effect of constraining the<br />

operational flexibility enjoyed by the<br />

management of a private company.<br />

(b) Regulatory requirements and<br />

potential liability<br />

Correspondingly, public companies must<br />

regularly file various reports with the<br />

Securities and Exchange Commission<br />

(SEC) and other regulators. In order to<br />

comply with disclosure requirements,<br />

companies often need to completely<br />

revamp or expand their existing<br />

documentation policies, which can be<br />

costly and time-consuming. In addition,<br />

directors and officers are potentially<br />

liable for potential misstatements and<br />

omissions in the registration statement<br />

and in the company’s ongoing reporting<br />

under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934<br />

(the Exchange Act).<br />

(c) Sarbanes-Oxley<br />

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed<br />

in 2002 as a reaction to a number of<br />

major corporate and accounting<br />

scandals, which cost investors billions<br />

of dollars and shook public confidence<br />

in the nation’s securities markets.<br />

SOX set new standards for public<br />

companies, including requirements<br />

relating to accounting, corporate<br />

governance, internal controls and<br />

enhanced financial disclosure. SOX<br />

compliance can be a time-consuming<br />

and costly process for a newly public<br />

company. Although the JOBS Act relieves<br />

emerging growth companies (EGCs) of<br />

the obligation to have their independent<br />

auditors provide an attestation on internal<br />

controls under Section 404(b), they are<br />

still required to put in place internal<br />

controls sufficient for management to<br />

provide the certifications required by<br />

Section 404(a).<br />

10 NYSE IPO Guide

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