Chinese wealth management unicorn Lufax on path to biggest US listing by Chinese issuer this year, targets US$2.4 billion IPO
- Company owned by Ping An Group has set US$13.5 as top end of its IPO price range
- Ping An opted for US over Hong Kong or Shanghai as it wanted a better valuation, more exposure to US institutional investors: sources
Chinese wealth management unicorn Lufax Holding is selling American depositary shares (ADSs) in an initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange that could potentially be the biggest US listing by a Chinese issuer this year.
The company, which is owned by Ping An Group, China’s biggest insurer, and is among the country’s top three online wealth management platforms with more than 12 million active users, is selling 175 million ADSs at an indicative price of between US$11.5 and US$13.5 per share, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. Each ADS presents 0.5 ordinary shares.
The IPO comes amid increasing threats from Washington about decoupling its economy from China’s. This has prompted 10 Chinese technology companies listed in the United States to seek secondary listings in Hong Kong this year. Such flotations have raised a combined US$15.4 billion, according to Refinitiv data.
There is an overallotment option to sell up to 26.25 million more shares to meet additional investor demand. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, UBS, HSBC and China PA Securities (Hong Kong) are lead underwriters for the deal. The company plans to list under the symbol LU.
Ping An opted for the US instead of Hong Kong or Shanghai for the Lufax IPO because it wants to achieve a better valuation and have more exposure to US institutional investors, said two sources familiar with the matter.