On Friday, January 9th, 13 students studying the "Kyushu Financial Business" course taught by Professor Kenta Funaoka of the Department Department of Business and Marketing Faculty of Commerce held a presentation session for officials from the Fukuoka Stock Exchange (Chuo-ku, Fukuoka City) on the topic of "Why are there so few new listings of companies in Kyushu and Okinawa?"
This presentation was an opportunity for students to independently learn about the factors that make it difficult for companies to go public through initial public offerings (IPOs) in Fukuoka and Kyushu.
In preparation for the presentation, the students collected information from the mass media and interviewed around 10 companies in the Kyushu region. They interviewed listed companies about their reasons for going public and the factors they used to decide on their market selection, while they questioned unlisted companies about their reasons for not going public and the measures that led to their growth. They surveyed various opinions about each company's approach to going public.
On the day, the participants were divided into four groups and presented their analysis results based on the interviews and market revitalization ideas. They also presented to the relevant parties how to raise awareness of the benefits of listing and create added value.
Upon receiving the report, Genichi Wakimoto (Director and Managing Executive Officer, Head of Investment Banking Division, Phillip Securities Co., Ltd.), Hidehiko Kaku (Managing Executive Officer, Head of Sales Department, Fukuoka Stock Exchange), and Keiko Murakami (Chief Researcher, General Affairs Department, Fukuoka Stock Exchange) commented, "I thought the approach to gathering information was interesting. This report was a great idea and provided new insights that will help unlisted companies to view listing in a positive light. We would definitely like to use it as reference."
Also appearing as a guest was Ikusei alumnus Shota Ikejiri (CEO of Re.make Inc./2014 Faculty of Commerce graduate), who shared his message: "I am working hard every day to get my company listed on the Fukuoka PRO Market in a few years. I believe passion is important to achieve your goals. I hope that you will also approach your work with enthusiasm."
After the report, a social gathering was held in the university cafeteria between students and market participants, deepening their friendships and concluding the event.
[Faculty of Commerce]
