Ant Group's lead IPO sponsor CICC rises 31% in Shanghai debut

[NEW YORK] One of the key investment banks responsible for Ant Group's initial public offering (IPO) soared on its own trading debut in Shanghai.

China International Capital Corp (CICC), a joint lead sponsor for Ant's mainland share sale, rose by as much as the regulatory limit of 44 per cent on Monday, triggering a 30-minute trading halt. The shares closed 31 per cent higher, with 128.2 million shares changing hands, more than five times the amount in Hong Kong as at the 3pm finish in Shanghai. CICC's stock rose as much as 5.2 per cent in Hong Kong.

The Ant IPO was a big win for CICC, with investment banks vying for a role on the deal to gain revenue and boost their ranking in closely watched league tables. CICC's listing in Shanghai came at a time that Chinese brokerages are having a bumper year for equity dealmaking, with Ant's multibillion-dollar IPO poised to boost mainland firms' global showing to the best in at least two decades.

CICC, which is leading the way thanks to a bevy of Chinese deals, is set this year to vault above US stalwarts Goldman Sachs Group and Morgan Stanley once Ant completes what's set to be a record US$34.5 billion IPO in Hong Kong and Shanghai, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The Beijing-based brokerage raised 13.2 billion yuan (S$2.69 billion) from its Shanghai listing, making it the fourth largest in China this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The deal attracted demand for 2,847 times amount of shares initially offered to retail investors online.

CSC Financial Co, the other joint lead sponsor of Ant's mainland listing, closed down 3 per cent in Shanghai, but rose as much as 5.6 per cent in Hong Kong on Monday.

BLOOMBERG