Real estate developer JS Land Plc listed on the Cambodia Securities Exchange’s (CSX) Growth Board on February 10 raising some 49 billion riel ($12 million).
JS Land became the second company to list on the bourse’s secondary board, after DBD Engineering Plc, and the 15th listed overall, CSX CEO Hong Sok Hour noted.
The 15 companies have raised a total of $281 million in funding to date, he said, adding that nine of them listed stocks, while six issued corporate bonds.
“These companies won’t just be able to obtain a long-term source of funding with low costs, but also receive tax incentives from the government, and build credibility locally and internationally with other potential investors. At the same time, the firms will gain more trust from customers, investors and the public,” Sok Hour said.
Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC) director-general Sou Socheat said JS Land’s listing on the Growth Board during Covid-19 highlights the development of the Kingdom’s capital market, with a growing list of companies and an upswing in public interest.
Socheat congratulated JS Land on its successful listing, and voiced optimism that other small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) would follow in its footsteps in the near future.
JS Land CEO Jack Yap said the firm leveraged its experience in the Malaysian and Hong Kong markets to position itself and focus on building affordable homes that meet Cambodian needs.
After seven years, JS Land has become a major player in the local affordable housing market, especially the condominium segment, he said.
“In recent years, as a result of emerging demand from middle class, the Cambodian market has seen a major shift from high-end condominiums to affordable ones, which now account for 68 per cent of the total stock,” he said, noting that affordable units have the most demand in the condo sector.
In the next few years, the company wants to reward shareholders with significant capital gains and sustainable dividend payouts, he said.
“Since we started in 2014, JS Land has always foreseen that Sen Sok would become one of Phnom Penh’s main residential areas, and that’s why we focused on it and started the The Garden Residency I there, and then proceeded with The Garden Residency II in the same area,” Yap said.
Land prices in the area have also seen a three-fold jump in the last few years he said, adding that the company had bought a 4.2ha parcel of land in anticipation of a property boom.
He suggested that a new brand of technology park, 10-15 major condos and other commercial projects worth a cumulative few hundred million dollars could be built on the plot over the next five-to-eight years.
The CSX CEO said the average daily trading volume and value reached all-time highs last year, at 234,628 shares and $269,169, respectively, or up by 400 per cent and 127 per cent over 2020.
A total of 4,000 new trading accounts were opened at the CSX last year, bringing the total to over 30,000, Sok Hour said.
He believes that with its new offering on the CSX, JS Land would be fit to serve as a role model for other real estate companies and other SMEs, and encourage them to consider diversifying sources of funding by tapping into the capital market.
“The capital market does not only serve as a source of financing for big firms, but also supports new SMEs,” Sok Hour added.
