Last updated 1 Jul 2026
Illiquidity
Unlisted securities have no continuous market. You may be unable to sell when you want to, at any price. The time to find a counterparty can run from days to months, and for some companies there may be no buyer at all.
Listing uncertainty
A company may never list. A draft or red-herring prospectus is a step in a process, not a commitment to a timetable; filings lapse and are refiled, and issues are withdrawn. If your reason for holding is the listing, that is the part of the thesis you control least.
Lock-in
Shares acquired before a public issue are generally locked in for six months from the date of listing, and longer for promoters. The lock-in attaches to the shares, not to the holder.
Valuation and price risk
Indicative prices derive from infrequent dealer quotes and can move sharply. Shares can and do list below the price at which they changed hands in the unlisted market. Past price movement says nothing about future value.
Information risk
Disclosure by unlisted companies is thinner, later and less standardised than by listed companies. Some figures on this site are provisional and unaudited, and are labelled as such.
Capital at risk
You may lose some or all of the money you commit. Only commit capital you can afford to leave committed and, if necessary, to lose.