Israeli investment company Trendlines Ltd. (SI:42T) has announced that it is founding a medical technology incubator in Singapore. Trendlines operates a medical technology incubator in Israel and a fund for investing in mature companies from the incubator, is active in R&D for international corporations, and is a partner in a fund with international company Bayer for agtech investments. Trendlines' market cap is 96.99 million Singapore dollars ($71.25 million), after holding its IPO in November 2015 at a company value of 38 million Singapore dollars ($28 million). German company B. Braun Melsungen AG was the leading investor in the IPO with an investment of 7.1 million Singapore dollars ($5 million).
Trendlines decided to hold its IPO in Singapore several months after beginning to operate there. A planned IPO in Canada, where several investors in the Trendlines fund live, fell through. Trendlines quickly moved its business to the Singapore stock exchange, completing the measure in a short time, due among other things to the great interest shown in Singapore and Asian countries as a whole in Israeli startups, Israeli biomed activity, and especially in the incubators model. An investment in a group like Trendlines enables residents of Singapore to gain widely dispersed exposure to fields of interest to them in Israel, thereby reducing the risk, in contrast to an investment in a single startup.
At the same time, like Israelis, investors in Singapore also prefer to see companies listed on their stock exchange developing a real connection with the local market. With the new incubator, Trendlines' connection with Singapore is becoming stronger. The incubator is based on ideas originating mainly with universities, government research institutes, and other institutions of higher learning. Singapore resident Eric Loh, former senior VP at Singapore European radiology company Biosensors International, listed on the Singapore stock exchange with a $1 billion market cap, will manage the incubator.
Trendlines has previously announced its intention of founding incubators in China and Germany, and these are in the formation process.
Being registered in Singapore enables Trendlines to also be listed for trading in the US through an American Depository Receipts (ADR) that tracks a share on a foreign stock exchange, and the company plans to pursue this option shortly. According to Trendlines' reports, the value of its assets is estimated at $89 million. The company has $20 million in cash.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 20, 2016
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016