Proceeds from initial public offerings in July soared on a global basis, hitting their highest level since before the 2008 financial meltdown, according to Thomson Reuters data.

The $30.5 billion that new issues raised globally in July was the most since November 2007 and exceeded the amount raised by follow-on issues for the month. Follow-ons, which were led by Mizuho Financial Group Inc <8411.T> and INPEX Corp <1605.T> in Japan, raised a total of $30.4 billion in July.

That was a turnaround from 2009, when IPOs for the most part were dwarfed by secondary offerings, many of them by banks under pressure from regulators to raise capital.

Year-to-date fees from the new issues, buoyed by Agricultural Bank of China's <1288.HK> $20.8 billion IPO and the UK's $1.04 billion Vallar Plc IPO, reached $3.7 billion. That is more than five times the $706 million of fees banks reaped in the first seven months of 2009.

Including IPOs, follow-ons and convertibles, the No. 1 ranked underwriting bank, year to date on a global basis, is JPMorgan Chase & Co . JPMorgan has underwritten 185 deals worth $35.32 billion. Goldman Sachs Group Inc is in the No. 2 position with 128 deals worth $31.03 billion, and Morgan Stanley is No. 3, with 143 deals worth $25.49 billion.

(Reporting by Clare Baldwin; Editing by Gunna Dickson and Steve Orlofsky)

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