Longer shelf registration to ease capital-raising pressures for companies

THE SECURITIES and Exchange Commission's (SEC) extension of shelf registration validity to five years from three years is expected to give companies greater flexibility in timing securities offerings, allowing them to better align with market conditions, improve pricing, and reduce compliance hurdles, analysts said.

- Alexandria Grace C. Magno

"Capital raising will be easier for Philippine companies, as regulators are now giving them a wider window to issue securities," Unicapital Securities Equity Research Analyst Jeri R. Alfonso said in a Viber message on Tuesday.

"For firms with staggered funding needs, this means no longer having to rush into the market just to keep up with the deadline."

Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Manager Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said the extended validity enables companies to issue securities when market demand is strongest, potentially increasing the proceeds per share or bond.