This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on November 22, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Topvision Eye Specialist Bhd made an impressive debut on Bursa Malaysia’s LEAP Market yesterday when it opened at 23 sen or 28% higher than its initial public offering (IPO) price of 18 sen apiece.

Medical director Dr Peter Chong Kuok Siong said that the RM12 million proceeds from the IPO would be used to expand Topvision’s network by building a new international eye specialist centre in the Klang Valley and two ambulatory care centres in the southern region, as well as expansion plans overseas.

He said the Klang Valley centre would be Topvision’s tertiary centre where its refractive suites would be sited because of the need for a bigger market.

“Otherwise, the business strategy will not be viable,” he said, adding that several locations had been identified.

At a media briefing following the listing ceremony, he revealed the group’s interest in the refractive segment, which involves Lasik surgery services, as Topvision currently does not provide such services.

“We are currently giving medical and surgical services which treat things related to cataracts, glaucoma and retinal surgeries,” he said.

Chief executive officer Kenny Liew Hock Nean said in medical tourism, Topvision is working closely with the Malaysia Healthcare Tourism Council which was recently allocated RM20 million by Putrajaya.

Chief operating officer Carolyn Soong said the group has a good base of Indonesian patients and recently conducted an exposition with the council in Indonesia. A longer-term plan is to expand to other Southeast Asian markets in two years.

“We have worked with several agencies in Indonesia, particularly in Jakarta, Palembang and Medan. We have signed up some contracts with third-party administrators or insurance administrators in Indonesia,” she said, pointing to PT Medikar as an example.

With five existing centres in Selangor and Johor, Topvision is planning to make its international eye specialist centre the regional centre for all sorts of related medical services. It will be designed to be a sub-specialty multidisciplinary tertiary eye centre, offering retina, cornea, glaucoma, paediatric, general anaesthetic, oculoplastics, refractive and Lasik services with in-house general anaesthesia services for complex eye procedures, including cornea transplants.

The group targets to commence work on its new regional centre in the fourth quarter of the year, and to lease the required RM3 million worth of equipment.

Topvision closed unchanged at 23 sen. Some 160,000 shares were traded, with the bulk or 130,000 done at the opening. At the current price, the company is valued at nearly RM59 million.