Former Citi Head of Equity Research, Peter Kurz, Joins QIC

TAIPEI,March 13,2019 -- Quantum International Corp. (QIC) held a press conference today to introduce and welcome Peter Kurz to the team as Chief Strategy Officer.

QIC is Taiwan's first independent,research-based capital market solution provider and supports clients in long-term shareholder value creation and navigating the capital markets. Founder and CEO Mr. Alex Lee stated that Mr. Kurz's nearly 30-year experience in the Taiwanese stock market is well-respected by both Taiwanese enterprises and global institutional investors. After joining QIC,Mr. Kurz will serve as an ideal spokesperson on behalf of Taiwan firms in the international capital market,while actively supporting clients in capital market advisory.

Mr. Kurz discussed why he feels that Taiwan is a very good target market for international institutional investors of small- and medium-cap stocks. He stated that Taiwanese companies are highly attractive in terms of profitability,yield,and investment value. In addition,corporate governance has largely improved for listed companies,and transparency has also been enhanced with the efforts of the Taiwan Stock Exchange. Finally,small- and medium-cap companies,defined by a US$2-billion market capitalization,account for 95% of all TWSE listed companies,with domestic individual investor participation also being high.

Mr. Kurz pointed out that many small- and medium-cap stocks in Taiwan are beginning to feel the effects of the "Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II)," which was implemented in the EU and affects how the sell-side distributes research and corporate access. The changes have largely decreased sell-side resources and led them to reduce coverage of small- and medium-cap stocks in Taiwan. He added that it is often difficult for the market values of small- and medium-cap stocks to reflect their true value,leading international institutional investors to overlook them during global asset allocations. By providing a long-term strategic overview,transparent financial and non-financial (ESG) information,Taiwanese firms can be better integrated into the global capital market in the future. This necessitates that internally companies will need to adopt a set of standard operating procedures that reflect global best practices and the needs of international institutional investors.

To help expand awareness and exposure for Taiwan-listed small and mid-cap firms with global institutional investors,TWSE and QIC,supported by Capital Securities,will host the 5th Taiwan CEO Week in Hong Kong from April 8-10. The event will see Chairmen/CEOs from 25 to 30 Taiwan-listed companies participate in meetings with international institutional investors and may be attended by more than 300 participants. Mr. Lee stated that many of the companies that participated in the 4th Taiwan CEO Day,held in October,have seen increased interest or investment from foreign investors.

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