Manforce debuts at 18.5 sen on leap market

KUALA LUMPUR: Manforce Group Bhd made its debut on the Bursa Malaysia Leading Entrepreneur Accelerator Platform (LEAP) Market yesterday at 18.5 sen, a half a sen premium over the initial public offer price of 18 sen.

At the opening bell, 100,000 shares changed hands.

The workforce solution and services company that focuses on foreign labour raised RM8.6 million through private placement at 18 sen per share, which then contributed to a market capitalisation of RM57.6 million upon listing.

About RM7.5 million of the proceeds raised from the IPO will be utilised for working capital and the balance used to defray estimated listing expenses.

Chief financial officer Andrew Chin said the listing on Bursa Malaysia was an important chapter for the company and one of the strategies the group is looking at is, moving up the market from LEAP to ACE.

“Definitely that is a strategy we are looking at with continuous advice from our principal adviser.

“Today is a very good, important day, as well as a milestone for our corporate chapter,” he told a press conference after the company’s listing.

According to Chin, to grow the company, the first step is to hire and manage up to 1,800 additional foreign workers within a two-year timeframe. — Bernama