Food for thought. The lazy trope that “a big IPO wave is bad for markets” should be retired. Initial public offerings are simply a way for firms to raise capital and shift ownership; they are not inherently bearish for equities. History makes this clear. In 1999, the US market traded at some of the richest valuations on record, even as the number of listed companies was roughly 50 per cent higher than today and new issues were coming thick and fast. That episode underlines a basic point: it is demand, not deal count, that sets prices. When risk appetite is strong, investors can absorb heavy issuance and still drive indices higher. When risk appetite is weak, even a modest calendar can struggle. The right question is not “are there too many IPOs?” but “who is the marginal buyer at today’s valuations, and how much equity risk are they prepared to add?
