Will the stock price of Kelly Board upgrade to the main board definitely rise? Analyst: Industry factors are the key | Lianhe Zaobao

In the first few days of trading in the stock market in 2026, news emerged that a company applied to transfer from the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange to the main board, resulting in a significant rise in its stock price. Last year, two companies also successfully "upgraded," but their stock price performance was not impressive. Analysts believe that "upgrading" does not necessarily mean that stock prices will rise, as stock performance is also influenced by market trends and industry-specific factors. The stock price of Ley Choon Group surged 20.5% to SGD 0.094 the day after the company announced its application for "upgrade" (January 6), closing at SGD 0.91, which, although the increase was reduced, still represented a very considerable gain of 16.67%. This stock closed at SGD 0.097 on Friday (January 9), down 4.9%. Regarding the significant rise in Ley Choon Group's stock price, Chen Guangzhi, head of research at CGS-CIMB Securities in Singapore, said in an interview with Lianhe Zaobao: "Given the current bullish market sentiment, such price movements are reasonable." The FTSE Straits Times Index has shown a strong upward trend since the beginning of the year, repeatedly setting new records, and as of Friday, it stood at 4744.66 points, with a cumulative increase of 2.12% this year. However, Zhuang Yibin, an investment analyst at Phillip Securities Research, believes that the stock price reaction of Ley Choon Group is not typical. Previous examples of companies that transferred from the Catalist board to the main board include Ever Glory United Holdings, which announced its "upgrade" in 2025, and LHN Group, which announced its "upgrade" in 2023. Their stock prices on the trading days following the announcement rose by 3% and fell by 3%, respectively. Zhuang Yibin said: "We believe this is because Ley Choon Group is in the construction industry, which is expected to be in an upward cycle in 2026. Additionally, Ley Choon Group currently receives relatively low analyst attention, which may explain the sharp fluctuations in stock price following the announcement of significant news." Other "upgraded" stocks include Oiltek International, a renewable energy solutions provider that "upgraded" last year, and TalkMed, a medical group that "upgraded" in 2022. TalkMed was subsequently acquired and privatized, and was delisted from the main board in September 2025. Further Reading Ley Choon Group applies to transfer to the main board, stock price surges over 20% Oiltek International officially transfers from the Catalist board to the main board Not every year has companies transitioning from the Catalist board to the mainboard, and in 2024, there were no companies "upgrading." Regarding the outlook for companies "upgrading" from the Catalist board to the mainboard, Chen Guangzhi said, "Small and medium-sized enterprises need several years to grow and enhance their profitability to meet the requirements for mainboard listing." The mainboard and the Catalist board are not a tiered system. The Catalist board, launched in 2007, is a trading board supervised with the assistance of sponsors, aimed at attracting high-growth companies. The Singapore Exchange has no minimum market capitalization or profit or revenue requirements for the Catalist board. Some Catalist-listed companies have market capitalizations even higher than some mainboard companies In fact, certain Catalist companies had market capitalizations at the time of listing that were higher than some mainboard companies. For example, the chain coffee shop operator Kimly had a market capitalization of SGD 288 million at the time of its listing, surpassing the SGD 234.43 million of APAC Realty, which listed in the same year. Mainboard listing requirements include a minimum market capitalization of SGD 300 million and must have revenue, or pre-tax profits of at least SGD 10 million and at least three years of operating history, or must be profitable with a market capitalization of at least SGD 150 million and at least three years of operating history. Additionally, blue-chip stocks favored by investors are all from the mainboard, thus creating different images for the mainboard and the Catalist board in the capital market, leading to the impression of "upgrading" and "downgrading." In the past four years, there has been one or two new constituents added to the Straits Times Index each year, also known as blue-chip stocks. The new constituent for the Straits Times Index in 2025 is Keppel DC REIT, replacing Jardine C&C, which was removed. After Keppel DC REIT announced its upgrade to a Straits Times Index stock, its share price slightly fell by 0.4% on the same day. In previous years, there have also been companies applying to transition from the mainboard to the Catalist board, and the number of such companies is generally less than those transitioning from the Catalist board to the mainboard. The year 2021 was an exception, with four companies announcing their transition from the mainboard to the Catalist board, one more than those moving from the Catalist board to the mainboard. In 2025, no companies transitioned from the mainboard to the Catalist board. Regarding the decrease in this number, Zhuang Yibin said, "Given Singapore's status as a safe haven and the policies introduced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 2025, such as the SGD 5 billion Securities Market Development Program (EQDP), the liquidity of the Singapore stock market has increased. This may explain why the number of stocks transitioning from the mainboard to the Catalist board has decreased ”