Asymmetric information in IPO underpricing — literature review

Abstract

Market anomalies after initial public offerings are a subject of extensive scientific research. One of such anomalies is underpricing, which refers to an increase of stock price in relation to the offering price shortly after stock issue. The occurrence of underpricing has been verified in many markets; however, the reasons for this phenomenon have not been yet conclusively established. The existence of information asymmetry in the capital market is one of the most popular assumptions applied in the studies in an attempt to explain the reasons why issuers discount the price of their offers. The purpose of this paper is to present the explanatory underpricing theories which are based on the asymmetry of information present between market participants, and to summarize the explanatory variables of underpricing that stem from the theory.