WH Group back with US$3b IPO and a new story for investors
Sino-US pork producer WH Group will relaunch its stalled initial public offering in a deal that could raise US$3 billion in one of the biggest share sales in the city this year.
Sino-US pork producer WH Group will relaunch its stalled initial public offering in a deal that could raise US$3 billion in one of the biggest share sales in the city this year.
"The deal is expected to be completed before mid-August," a source with knowledge of the listing plan told the South China Morning Post. "It will raise at least US$2 billion and maybe as much as US$3 billion," the source added.
The revival of the share sale comes three months after the original offer collapsed on a combination of factors including poor market conditions, a disclosure of massive payments to two company executives and conflicting messages to investors from a record 29 investment bank bookrunners.
Market sources said Morgan Stanley and Bank of China International - two of the original leads on the April offer along- side Goldman Sachs and UBS - were co-sponsors of the new share sale which would have a much slimmer line-up of bookrunners.
There are a lot of people who like this story and the shares are being offered at a price investors are prepared to pay
The April flotation at first aimed to raise US$6 billion and was eventually scaled back to US$1.9 billion before being scrapped.