Nissin Monde Biscuit Manufacturer Sets The Largest IPO Record In The Philippines, Which Is With Value Of IDR 14.3 Trillion!

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Biscuit company Monde Nissin made surprising news. This Indonesian-led company listed its shares on the Philippine Stock Exchange, Manila by setting a record regarding Initial Public Offering (IPO) proceeds.

Monde Nissin was successfully listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange, on Tuesday, June 1. Instant noodle manufacturer Lucky Me! managed to raise IPO funds of 48.6 billion Philippine pesos or about USD 1 billion (approximately IDR 14.30 trillion, exchange rate of IDR 14.300 per US dollar).

Quoted from CNN Business, Monde Nissin's IPO marks the largest initial public offering in the country and is on the list of the largest food and beverage companies in Southeast Asia.

"Most of the IPO funds will be used to increase the company's production of consumer goods, especially Quorn", said Monde Nissin CEO, Henry Soesanto.

Henry is an Indonesian and has been a senior in several group companies including Monde Land, Inc, Monde Rizal Properties Inc, Monde Nissin Singapore Pte Ltd, Monde Nissin UK Ltd, Monde Nissin International Investments Ltd, Monde Nissin Holdings (Thailand) Ltd, Monde Nissin New Zealand Limited, All Fit & Popular Foods Inc. He is a graduate of the Surabaya Institute of Technology, as quoted on the official website of Monde Nissin.

Monde Nissin acquired UK-based 'meatless' chicken brand Quorn in 2015 for 550 million euros, or about $847 million at the time, or around IDR 12 trillion. Quorn is a 'meat' that comes from fermented mushrooms.

"With the alternative protein space poised for explosive growth over the next 10 years, we didn't want to miss that opportunity", Soesanto told CNN Business in an interview.

"We think increasing production capacity is very important for the next two to three years, at least to grow at the same pace as the sector", he added.

He added that they also want to increase their sales of instant noodles in Asia, which they describe as their "core business". According to Soesanto, although he has long been a market leader in the Philippines, research shows that the country's consumption in this category, namely instant noodles, is still relatively lower than its neighboring countries.

"The average customer there only eats about 36 packs of noodles per year, while in Vietnam and Indonesia they usually eat around 50 packs", he explained.

Monde Nissin is present in more than 30 countries and makes the Philippines and Thailand one of their main markets. In the coming years, they plan to increase their exports to existing markets across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and venture into new countries, including Japan, Indonesia, and Vietnam, according to its prospectus.