Abstract
We examine the determinants of an IPO firm’s choice to trade on a when-issued market and if the decision to trade on this market has any impact on the pricing of IPO shares. We find that companies that are larger, less risky, have higher future growth opportunities and are underwritten by reputable underwriters are more likely to choose to trade on the when-issued market. Our ‘what-if’ analysis shows that the decision to have a when-issued market affects the setting of the offer price. For companies that have when-issued trading, the actual offer price is 25% higher than it it would have been had these firms not had a when-issued market. We interpret this higher offer price as a ‘rent’ that investors pay to acquire shares of such companies. Interestingly this rent is paid mostly in those IPOs where retail investors are allowed to participate in the offer. When-issued market appears to be highly informative for investors and has a positive impact on the trading volume on the first day of unconditional trading.
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