Haitong Securities has raised HK$13 billion in Hong Kong's biggest initial public offering (IPO) since December, a market source said yesterday.
The mainland brokerage firm, which is also listed in Shanghai, sold about 1.23 billion shares at HK$10.6 each, near the bottom of its indicated price range, according to the source. The shares were originally offered at HK$10.48 to HK$11.18 a share, according to the prospectus.
Haitong's stock sale is about 40 per cent higher than the total amount raised in first-time offerings in Hong Kong in the first quarter, according to Bloomberg data.
Haitong, based in Shanghai, is the third-biggest publicly-traded mainland brokerage with a market value of 85 billion yuan (HK$104.36 billion). The mainland's two largest brokerages are Beijing-based Citic Securities and GF Securities in Guangzhou.
Haitong closed up 2.4 per cent at 10.33 yuan in Shanghai yesterday, outpacing the benchmark Shanghai composite index which increased 1.2 per cent, and 17 per cent above its offer price.
ANZ Bank economist Raymond Yeung said he could not comment on individual stock offerings, but he did not believe the current market sentiment was receptive towards IPOs.