China Re said poised to raise USD2 billion from HK IPO

China Reinsurance Group Corp., the nation’s biggest reinsurer, is set to raise USD2 billion from an initial public offering in Hong Kong, people with knowledge of the matter said.
The Beijing-based company plans to sell 5.77 billion shares at HK$2.70 apiece, the top end of a marketed range, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The shares were offered at HK$2.25 to HK$2.70 each, according to the reinsurer’s IPO prospectus.
China Re is raising funds to bolster its capital base as Hong Kong’s IPO market recovers from a slow third quarter. With the reinsurer’s deal done, the value of first-time sales in the city has jumped 28 percent this year to $23 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
There were $2.8 billion of such offerings in Hong Kong from July through September, down 50 percent from the third quarter of last year, the data show.
U.S.-based Prudential Financial Inc., China Life Insurance Co. and Macau casino executive Pansy Ho are among 15 cornerstone investors that will buy a combined $1.12 billion of shares in the offering, according to the prospectus. China International Capital Corp., HSBC Holdings Plc and UBS Group AG are joint sponsors of the IPO.
A Hong Kong-based external spokesman for China Re declined to comment.
Reuters reported the final pricing earlier, citing unidentified people. Fox Hu and Joyce Koh, AP