TAIPEI, May 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Taiwan Stock Exchange (the TWSE), in partnership with GrandTech Cloud Services Inc., co-hosted the “F2SU Asia IPO Synergy” forum on Friday. The event aimed to attract Asian startups and showcase Taiwan’s fundraising potential. As part of the “A Friend to Startups (F2SU)” initiative, the forum brought together startups and venture capitalists from across Asia, highlighting the TWSE’s commitment to supporting high-growth companies.
The TWSE welcomed a delegation of 15 representatives from innovative companies across the region during the forum’s morning session, where participants exchanged insights on Taiwan’s capital market. The TWSE Chairman and CEO Sherman Lin said that the Taiwan Innovation Board (TIB) is designed to support high-potential, globally minded companies with flexible listing criteria and a specialized review process. “Our goal is to enhance visibility, strengthen fundraising capacity, and broaden access to growth capital – helping innovative companies grow and stand out in the market,” he said.
The TWSE President Edith Lee, speaking at the evening reception, highlighted that the TWSE offers a wide range of tailored services for innovative companies, ranging from pre-IPO consultation and guidance to post-listing support such as investor relations (IR) platforms and ESG resources aligned with global standards. These initiatives reflect the TWSE’s firm commitment to fostering innovation.
Frankie Hsu, Chairman of GrandTech Cloud Services, praised Taiwan’s capital market for effectively supporting the growth of innovative industries. James C.J. Hsiao, Director General of Department of Industrial Development at the National Development Council, added that the government continues to channel significant resources into innovation — spanning funding, global talent recruitment, and overseas expansion facilitation. With cross-sector collaboration, the development of Taiwan’s innovation ecosystem is expected to accelerate further.
Two keynote speakers also shared their valuable insights and perspectives. Alice Chang, founder of U.S.-listed beauty tech firm Perfect Corp., shared her IPO experience and outlined several advantages of listing in Taiwan. Jamie Lin, Chairman of AppWorks, highlighted Taiwan’s strengths beyond electronics and AI supply chains, citing high market liquidity, strong price-to-book (P/B) ratios, and substantial foreign ownership as key reasons why Taiwan is an attractive IPO destination. Both speakers affirmed the potential of Taiwan’s capital market.
As of April 2025, Taiwan’s equity market had a total capitalization of NT$65.09 trillion (approx. US$2.24 trillion), with an average daily turnover of NT$308.3 billion (US$10.63 billion), reflecting strong liquidity and growing international appeal.
Taiwan’s P/B ratio stood at 2.19 in March — outperforming Japan (1.84), Korea (0.84), Hong Kong (1.31), and Singapore (1.29) — highlighting its valuation strength among regional markets. The P/B ratio on Taiwan’s Innovation Board reached 3.95, reflecting robust investor appetite for growth companies and affirming the platform’s role in emphasizing the intrinsic value of emerging enterprises.
To expand its reach in Asia, the TWSE, in collaboration with GrandTech Cloud Services, invited regional startups to join the forum, further extending the influence of Taiwan’s Innovation Board. The TWSE has also partnered with KPMG Taiwan to launch the “Southeast Asia Innovation Capital Platform”, holding roadshows in Singapore and Malaysia, with another planned for early July. This initiative aims to deepen ties with Southeast Asian startups and investors.
The forum drew strong participation from media, startups, and venture capital firms across the region. Attendees actively engaged with the TWSE representatives to explore listing opportunities and gain deeper insights into Taiwan’s capital market mechanisms and advantages. The event also helped raise the profile of Taiwan’s capital market in the region. The TWSE said that it will continue collaborating with innovative companies to chart the next stage of growth.
(From left to right) Frankie Hsu, Chairman of GrandTech Cloud Services, and Sherman Lin, Chairman of the TWSE
(From left to right) Alice Chang, founder of Perfect Corp, James C.J. Hsiao, Director General of Department of Industrial Development at the National Development Council, Edith Lee, President of the TWSE, Frankie Hsu, Chairman of GrandTech Cloud Services, Jamie Lin, Chairman of AppWorks
About TWSE
The Taiwan Stock Exchange (the “TWSE”) started operations on February 9, 1962. The TWSE is responsible for operating and advancing the Taiwan securities market. The TWSE’s primary business operations include listing, trading, settlement, and surveillance. These comprise listing promotion and review, post-listing supervision and corporate governance, maintaining market trading and order, securities firms’ services, investor protection, clearing and settlement operations, safeguarding against market defaults and the monitoring of illegal transactions. The Exchange provides comprehensive services to the securities market.
