Despite the departure of a handful of his companies from the Oslo Stock Exchange, there are no hard feelings between the bourse and Andreas Sohmen-Pao.
Speaking to TradeWinds, exchange chief executive Oyvind Amundsen would welcome any new listings from the BW Group, while a spokesperson for Sohmen-Pao-backed BW Group said Oslo would be in play if it were to take any of its private companies public.
“We look at each case on its own merits, and would certainly consider Oslo for future listings,” the spokesperson said.
Amundsen said: “We hope that we will see more of his companies, as well, because he’s growing his fleet in different sectors.”
A long-time stalwart of the Oslo Stock Exchange, Sohmen-Pao argued earlier this year that New York was outpacing Oslo and that the exchange needed to think about how to stay competitive.
Since the BW Group delisted BW Ideol and BW Epic Kosan, it has made moves to potentially delist BW Offshore and has sought a secondary New York listing for BW LPG.
Amundsen said there would be replacements for those companies.
He told TradeWinds that there were several companies ready to list but were waiting for a rosier macroeconomic picture.
Those companies can start their journey in public markets in Oslo and launch a listing in New York later, he added.
“Some will seek a dual listing in New York but that is normally after a listing on Oslo Bors. We see it as something positive that a company can have a successful listing here, and then want to grow even bigger by listing in New York as well,” Amundsen said.
