Bad loans make good business for China Cinda

[HONG KONG] China Cinda Asset Management Co Ltd lifted the lid on how Beijing turns bad loans from its banks into profits, issuing a prospectus yesterday for an initial public offering that has reeled in some of the world's biggest investors.

The IPO, seeking up to US$2.5 billion, is set to be the largest in Hong Kong this year as sovereign wealth funds join hedge funds in betting that soured loans will be a growth business in China's slowing economy.

Cinda plans to list shares on Dec 12. It's one of four debt collectors created in 1999 by China's Ministry of Finance to process bad loans made by the country's biggest banks to a wide range of companies.