China’s Chery Automobile seeks up to HK$9.1 billion in Hong Kong IPO

[HONG KONG] Chery Automobile is seeking to raise as much as HK$9.1 billion (S$1.5 billion) in a Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO), kicking off what’s shaping up to be a busy season for big listings in the financial hub.

China’s biggest car exporter is offering 297.4 million shares at HK$27.75 to HK$30.75 each, according to its listing document on Wednesday (Sep 17). That excludes options to increase the size of the deal if demand is strong. Trading is set to begin Sep 25.

Chery joins the barrage of Chinese firms going public in Hong Kong, where listing proceeds have soared to a four-year high. Zijin Gold International could soon follow, with the mining giant preparing an IPO in the city that may fetch more than US$3 billion, the biggest such deal in the world since May.

Billion-dollar deals are trudging ahead in Hong Kong after a brief summer lull, building on a surge by Chinese companies that are raising cash to fund expansions abroad and meet capital needs in an intensifying artificial-intelligence competition.

One thing that stands out about Chery’s offering is the absence of Wall Street banks among its arrangers. China International Capital, Huatai Securities, GF Securities and Citic Securities are overall coordinators of the IPO.

Chery, which assembles Jaguars and Land Rovers in China, said that it plans to plow the proceeds towards research and development, overseas expansion and factory upgrades. BLOOMBERG