The following is a small excerpt from our complete 2009 Global IPO Market Year-End Review and Analysis.

It is a testament to the resilience of global economies, entrepreneurship, and financial animal spirits that the global IPO market rebounded as quickly and strongly as it did in 2009 after the devastations of worldwide stock markets and banking systems in 2008. 2009 will be seen as a transition year between crisis and recovery to normalcy. While aggregate global proceeds are still well below normal levels, issuance accelerated through the year, creating a solid foundation for 2010.

U.S. IPO market accelerated

There were stark differences in the characteristics of IPOs originating from the dominant global players, the U.S. and China. U.S.-based IPOs were led by LBOs and mortgage REITs, reflecting private equity investors’ need to deleverage on one hand and financial opportunism on the other. In contrast, Chinese IPOs, whether debuting in the U.S., China or Hong Kong, raised money to pour into China’s domestic infrastructure, its nascent pharmaceutical industry, and other consumer-oriented enterprises. In a nutshell, the U.S. IPO market activity has largely been geared to healing the excesses of overleveraging in private equity and real estate, while the Chinese IPOs reflect a growth economy. That said, there are signs that traditional growth IPOs are returning in the U.S.. Though only one company went public during the first three months of the year, as the broader equity indices improved, IPO volume improved sequentially in each of the next three quarters, buoyed by private equity-backed deals, mortgage REITs and Chinese ADRs. For the year, there were 63 U.S. IPOs, up 47% from 2008 (and double 2008’s total excluding SPACs).