A sign of things to come? Chinese investment banks dominated Hong Kong listings market in 2017
But Credit Suisse was the top coordinator with US$1.3 billion worth of IPOs
Chinese investment banks are playing a more dominant role in Hong Kong’s initial public offering market compared with 10 years ago, taking up half of the top 10 spots when it comes to underwriting new listings in the city.
Meanwhile, their Wall Street rivals have declined sharply in rankings.
China International Capital Corporation (CICC), China Merchants Bank (CMB), China Construction Bank (CCB), China Merchants Securities International (CMS) and Citic Securities were among the city’s top 10 global coordinators of IPOs by deal value in 2017 as of December 22, according to data by Dealogic.
It is also the highest number of mainland banks to make the list in a decade. In 2007, only two mainland players made the top 10, Bank of China and CICC, while Morgan Stanley, UBS and Goldman Sachs occupied the top 3 spots.
CICC worked as global coordinator on US$1.15 billion worth of IPO deals in 2017, climbing one spot in the rankings to No 2 from last year. Credit Suisse was No 1 last year and coordinated US$1.3 billion worth of IPOs.
Morgan Stanley, which had topped the list for 2015 and 2016, slipped to seventh place in 2017. Goldman Sachs, which ranked second for both of the past two years, did not make the top 10 in 2017.
In the region’s investment banking business, coordinators and book runners are leading underwriters of IPOs, usually securing the largest fees. Coordinators are responsible for various aspects of a listing, including its timetable, road shows and formation and management of underwriting syndicates. Book runners are usually responsible for book building, pricing and share allocation.