关键词: 科创板, 战略投资者, IPO抑价

Abstract: In 2019, China set up the Science and Technology Innovation Board(STAR Market)and the pilot registration system to improve the basic construction of the capital market and promote the development of high-tech and strategic emerging industries. The STAR Market has introduced a strategic placement mechanism to support listed firms in introducing strategic investors. Before the establishment of the STAR Market, the strategic placement mechanism had no “useful place” in the A-share market due to the immature conditions of China's A-share market and the scarcity of new share resources. Therefore, the early studies on strategic(cornerstone)investors and IPO underpricing were all based on Hong Kong H-shares, and the conclusions varied considerably. More needs to be understood about whether strategic investors will affect IPO underpricing in emerging markets.
Based on the institutional background of the STAR Market, this paper examines the impact of strategic investors on IPO underpricing rate from the perspectives of the information asymmetry theory(rational investors)and the investor sentiment theory(bounded rational investors)respectively. Using data from the STAR Market, we find that the placement proportion of the firms introducing strategic investors is significantly positively associated with the IPO underpricing rate. Finding a positive relation implies that the certification effect of strategic investors will increase IPO underpricing. Considering that the quantitative characteristic of investors and the R&D intensity of issuers will affect the certification role of strategic investors in IPO issuance, we further examine the impact of the above factors on the relationship between them. It is found that the above certification effect is more pronounced for firms with a larger number of strategic investors and a higher level of R&D intensity. In addition, we also find a significant positive association between the placement ratio of strategic investors and the subsequent effect of IPO underpricing rate(the future market performance of the issuer), which indicates that introducing strategic investors by IPO firms will not only result in high underpricing in the initial stage of listing but also lead to the continued popularity of new shares after listing and the continuous rise of stock prices.
The significance of this study is reflected in the following aspects: First, it expands the research on strategic investors to emerging markets. Second, it provides research results on the certification effect of strategic investors. Third, it enriches the research on IPO underpricing from the perspective of strategic investors. Finally, the strategic allocation mechanism of the STAR Market is an important measure for China's capital market to support the development of science and technology innovation enterprises. Therefore, the conclusions have reference significance for improving the role of strategic investors, which can provide empirical evidence for China's regulatory authorities to continue to optimize the strategic placement mechanism and reasonably guide market investors.

Key words: STAR Market, Strategic Investors, IPO Underpricing