KUALA LUMPUR (March 11): Bursa Malaysia ACE Market-bound ACO Group Bhd's initial public offering's (IPO) Malaysian public portion of 15 million new shares was oversubscribed by 15.53 times after the electrical products distributor received a total of 3,261 applications for 247.98 million new shares worth RM69.43 million.

In a statement today, ACO, which is slated to be listed on March 18, said the group’s IPO entails a public issue of 58 million new shares and an offer for sale of 25 million existing shares of 28 sen a share.

The public portion of 58 million new shares includes allocations for ACO directors and employees besides Bumiputera investors, ACO said.

ACO group managing director Tang Pee Tee said in the statement the encouraging response to the company’s IPO reflects the market’s confidence towards ACO's growth prospects.

"We have laid a strong foundation and built a resilient business model over the last 29 years. This has paved the way for our future growth as we continually aim to 'power up' the electrical products value chain in the underserved territories in Peninsular Malaysia.

“Over the next three years, we will be expanding our presence in other towns within Johor and in other states such as Negeri Sembilan, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pulau Pinang and Pahang. We trust that with our established track record and deep industry know-how, we will be able to replicate our success in the new markets,” Tan said.

ACO said in the statement that upon listing, the group will have a market capitalisation of RM84 million based on the issue price of 28 sen a share and its enlarged share capital of 300 million shares.

Alliance Investment Bank Bhd is the principal adviser, sponsor, sole underwriter and placement agent for the IPO exercise, according to ACO.