I can think of two reasons that placements might go for more than the current share price. One of course is the tax advantages of flow through shares. You can buy and immediately sell at a lower price for a guaranteed profit after the tax advantages are factored in. The other would be a placement of shares in a company where someone wants in but knows if they buy the number of shares they want it would drive up the price substantially. Better to buy new shares a bit above the current price than buy on the market and end up paying more as the sp is driven up by the buying.