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SenseTime gets green light from Hong Kong exchange to proceed with US$2 billion IPO, sources say

  • China’s largest artificial intelligence company gets approval from Hong Kong stock exchange’s listing committee for share sale, sources say
  • SenseTime’s flotation could be the first tech IPO that raises over US$1 billion since Li Auto’s deal in August

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Xu Li, chief executive officer of SenseTime Group, is identified by the company's facial recognition system on a screen at the company’s showroom in Beijing on June 15, 2018. Photo: Bloomberg
Georgina Lee,Iris OuyangandEnoch Yiu
SenseTime has got the green light from the Hong Kong stock exchange to proceed with its flotation, according to people familiar with the transaction, taking the largest artificial intelligence (AI) company in China a step closer to its US$2 billion initial public offering.
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A launch of the deal before the year-end would put SenseTime – backed by SoftBank Group, Temasek Holdings and Alibaba Group Holding, the owner of the Post – in potential competition with another mega-sized issuer, China Tourism Group Duty Free, for investors’ capital.

The world’s largest travel retailer has also won the go-ahead this week from the Hong Kong bourse to proceed with its secondary listing and share sale, the Post has reported, citing a source familiar with the transaction. The Shanghai-listed firm could be targeting up to US$5 billion, according to previous media reports.

The Post has previously reported that SenseTime is targeting at least US$2 billion, but the company has declined to comment on the deal. China International Capital Corporation (CICC), Haitong and HSBC are serving as underwriters on the offering.

These mega IPO deals would give the Hong Kong stock exchange a shot in the arm. The city has been devoid of new issuances of over US$1 billion for much of the second half since Li Auto raised about US$1.7 billion in August, data from Refinitiv shows. Fundraising on the Hong Kong market in the third quarter stood as the lowest since the first quarter of last year when Covid-19 impacted the market, although it still ranked third after Nasdaq and New York for the 10 months to October.
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