If You Really Want to Gamble, Head Over to the Third Board

China's third board is the future of stock markets. It allows investors and entrepreneurs to connect directly, with easier listing requirements.

China Daily: New Third Board not the Nasdaq of China, says official

It would be inaccurate to compare China's New Third Board, the pilot national share transfer system for small and medium-sized enterprises, with the Nasdaq Stock Market in the United States, Yeeli Hua Zheng, chief representative of the US stock exchange in China, said on Monday.

The National Equities Exchange and Quotations, better known as the New Third Board in China, is a unique and innovative mechanism of the capital market and no bourses in the world can be compared to it, Zheng said at a news conference in Beijing.

The response from Nasdaq's China chief was intended to clarify market confusion about the Chinese board, as it has been increasingly referred to as the Chinese version of Nasdaq by some press and market observers.

Zheng said that the listing standards and the fundraising mechanisms of the two bourses are totally different.

"Comparing the New Third Board with Nasdaq would be ignoring the innovative characteristics of the pilot board in China," she said.

...Since it was launched in 2012, the board has developed into an open fundraising platform for small unlisted companies in China as part of the country's effort to develop a multi-layered capital market.

Shares of more than 2,000 companies are traded on the board through agreement or market making with total capitalization exceeding 1.2 trillion yuan ($190 billion).

SCMP: China’s Third Board market a nursery and laboratory for start-ups, but investors beware

Fund managers and investment bankers did not pay much attention to the Third Board until Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited in December and showed his support to the market. The Third Board has since become more active.

As of May 28, there are 2,481 companies listed and many believe the total would hit 3,000 by the end of the year, higher than the stock exchanges of Shanghai and Shenzhen. But turnover on that day was only 530 million yuan, compared to the 2.4 trillion yuan turnover in Shanghai and Shenzhen on the same day.

In term of volatility, Third Board stocks are not capped by daily trading limits as they do in Shanghai or Shenzhen, where shares face a 10 per cent daily limit move. Wild price swings are the norm.

“As the Third Board market is still at an early stage of its development and is new to China’s investment community, the recent volatility is not unexpected,” said Edmond Chan, co-head of capital markets services of PwC Hong Kong.

“The Third Board widens financing channels and provides funding for corporations in China. It serves as a platform to connect wealthy individuals and institutions with companies such as start-ups and high tech companies that require capital to convert their business model into a profit generating business,” he said.

Wusi recently listed a subsidiary on the Third Board: WuXi PharmaTech Lists Shares of Small-Molecule Manufacturing Subsidiary STA on New Third Board in China. There is an offer to take WuXi private and some believe the company would then relist on the A-share market.

One problem with the new board is the ease of listing: although 2500 companies are listed on the exchange, about 200 firms dominate trading. The result is many firms are still looking at other options, such as using reverse listings in Hong Kong.

经济观察： 到港股买壳去

Since last year, many domestic real estate companies backdoor backdoor to Hong Kong, resulting in relatively high-profile main housing, housing prices pushed higher. Mainland shares that would have been dead in the water because of the rise of the market three new board, gradually swelled, prompting some otherwise made up his mind to go to Hong Kong-listed company moved reflux heart. Wu had a friend over, make photovoltaic power plant project, too expensive in Hong Kong, back to the new board to spend more than ten million to buy a shell.

However, the number of new board listed companies at present, although historically close to 2500, but the city can do less than 200 transactions.

作为上海一家PE机构合伙人的吴志超最近接到了很多公司到香港上市融资的咨询。吴原本从事境内的并购融资业务，但由于此前曾帮境内项目公司到香港借壳上市的经历，不少有同样融资需求的企业现在纷纷找上门要求指点迷津。“一个星期两三单。”他表示。

最新一例是一家深圳的纯贸易公司，去香港上市融资的意愿特别强烈，原因很简单：又快又便宜。

在A股市场上纯贸易类的公司特别少，比如福建厦门的建发国际，因为外界认为贸易行业利润低，再加上这两年大环境不好，做进出口贸易的生意都比较清淡，在目前注册制靴子仍未落地的情况下想要在境内上市显然不知猴年马月。“而在市场化程度较高的香港，如果只是买壳，拿到上市公司控股权，到交割完毕半年就可以搞定。”在吴志超看来，即便将来实施注册制，没有行政管控的香港依然比A股具有吸引力。因为他认为，注册制只不过是将审核主体从证监会转到交易所，上市周期可能仍要两到三年，并不会缩短。

壳费也是境内公司考量上市地点的主要因素。尽管随着去年下半年以来借壳案例的增多，港股市场壳费有水涨船高的迹象，但总体变化不大，依然在2亿到5亿港元之间。但A股市场的的价格则普遍高出很多。

其实买壳卖壳在香港股市是一门古老的技艺，历来司空见惯，江湖上所谓“陈壳王”、“詹壳王”等的事迹亘古流传。而在香港借壳后能马上发债或者增发新股，迅速为企业融资打开方便之门，进行新一轮的并购扩张。

。。。。。。去年以来，不少境内地产公司去香港买壳借壳，导致壳主比较高调，壳价被炒高。而本来一潭死水的内地新股市场因为有了新三板的崛起，逐渐热闹起来，惹得一些本来打定主意要去香港上市的公司动了回流的心。吴志超就有个朋友，做光伏电站项目的，嫌香港贵，回到新三板花一千多万买了个壳。

不过，新三板挂牌企业数量目前虽历史性地逼近2500家，但其中能做市交易的不足200。

众所周知，券商是新三板高潮的幕后推手，在挂牌这个环节，它们能赚的费用也就170万到180万元人民币之间，只做这个环节，显然吃不饱。如果本身没有好的概念和业绩让券商在做市的时候再赚一把，券商是很难有动力帮企业做市的。再加上新三板上都是机构投资者，不易被忽悠，以至于很多公司交易量很小，而没有交易就融不到钱，融不到钱就没有办法再去投资并购把企业做大，向中小板冲刺。这意味着去香港对很多公司而言仍然具有吸引力。