CHINA is to abolish short-lists of candidates for overseas stock exchange listing because of an increasing number of applicants, according to NASDAQ's Asia Pacific business development director Patrick Sutch.
Mr Sutch said he was told of the change by China Securities Regulatory Commission officials during a visit to Beijing last week.
He said the commission would allow individual applications by companies wanting overseas listings.
'It means we have to widen our net [of publicising NASDAQ],' he said. 'We can't just hold talks with the regulator only.' Mr Sutch said at least two Chinese companies would list on the NASDAQ system by the end of the year.
The number of overseas listing candidates is strictly controlled by the Chinese Government. The commission has so far assigned three batches of companies (38 in all) for direct listing on foreign exchanges.
Mr Sutch said the abolition of the short list indicated a shift in policy that previously favoured large state-owned enterprises.
Companies with healthy profit and loss accounts would now have the chance to go abroad, he said.