We’ll have to wait a few weeks to see who wins the title for China’s most valuable Internet company, but the champion for wealthiest chief executive has just been declared with Alibaba founder Jack Ma beating out Tencent (HKEx: 700) chief Pony Ma for the title. That declaration, based on estimates by Bloomberg, comes after release of the latest public filing from Alibaba in the run-up to its highly anticipated IPO that could come in less than 3 weeks. That filing also showed that profits from China’s leading e-commerce company rose 60 percent in the second quarter, an impressive feat for a company of its size. Read Full Post…
Newly released data are showing an inevitable slowdown at Yu’ebao, Alibaba’s inaugural financial product that has shaken up China’s stodgy banking industry since its launch a year ago. The data released by Alibaba’s Tianhong Asset Management, which officially runs Yu’ebao, also shows the product’s return rate has dropped considerably from earlier levels, which will further undermine its attractiveness. Separately, media are reporting that Alibaba has tentatively chosen the date of August 8 for its highly anticipated New York listing, which had been previously rumored due to its significance as a lucky day on the Chinese calendar. Read Full Post…
It’s been 2 weeks since I’ve written a post exclusively about leading e-commerce company Alibaba, so I thought I’d end the week with a round-up of a few company news bits including its selection of the New York Stock Exchange for its highly-anticipated IPO. In related news, the company’s major shareholder Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) is reportedly in talks to reduce its planned sale of Alibaba shares in the offering. Last but not least, Alibaba has formally added its name to one of its latest acquisitions, a stake in one of China’s leading soccer clubs. Read Full Post…
After a 2 week pause with no new listings, the market for overseas tech IPOs has come chugging back to life with a strong trading debut for video sharing site Xunlei (Nasdaq: XNET). That solid performance could bode well for online karaoke company Tiange, which has just filed for its own new listing in Hong Kong, continuing a recent trend towards more Chinese Internet listings in the former British colony. Both news bits provide the latest evidence that the overseas market for Chinese IPOs is finding a second wind after a losing momentum in April and May. That new momentum is likely to last through August when e-commerce leader Alibaba is expected to make what could be the largest IPO ever by an Internet company. Read Full Post…
After going the entire week without a major IPO story, 3 major developments are showing there’s still some life in the market despite earlier signs of stumbling. At the top of the news is online recruiting site Zhaopin (NYSE: ZPIN), which has just posted a nice trading debut after a solid pricing for its new American Depositary Shares (ADSs). Meantime, video sharing site Xunlei is steaming ahead with its own listing by formally setting a price range for its shares, which means a final pricing and trading debut are likely next week. Last but not least there’s restaurant ratings site Dianping, which has formally hired investment banks for a new mega offering to raise up to $1 billion. Read Full Post…
New reports on tech conglomerate Legend Holdings are raising the possibility that the company’s long-discussed IPO could be drawing near, offering investors a new choice that combines its core Lenovo (HKEx: 992) PC business with a wide range of other assets. Legend founder Liu Chuanzhi had previously indicated he wanted to list the company around 2015, but other recent signs sparked media speculation that the plan was being accelerated and could come later this year. (previous post) One of the biggest questions is still where the company will list, with China and Hong Kong as the 2 likeliest options. Read Full Post…
Two big fund-raising stories are in the headlines as people return to work after the Dragon Boat holiday, including a new IPO filing by online recruitment site Zhaopin.com and a big new funding round by a year-old mobile news app developer. The first news bit has seen Zhaopin announce a price range for its IPO nearly a month after making its first public filing for the offer. Meantime, the app whose name translates roughly to Today’s Top News, is showing big promise in the mobile news space, with word that its developer has just raised an impressive $100 million in new funding. Read Full Post…
New York is firmly establishing a reputation as the preferred listing venue for China Internet IPOs, while Hong Kong is developing a taste for auto-related listings. That’s my quick assessment following reports that online video sharing site Xunlei has just joined a long queue of Chinese Internet firms filing to list in New York. At nearly the same time, car rental company China Auto Rental has filed to list in Hong Kong, reversing course from a previous plan to offer shares in New York. Read Full Post…
E-commerce giant JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) has formally ended its IPO process with a solid trading debut, capping a surprisingly strong performance despite signs that investors were rapidly losing interest in Chinese Internet stocks. But in a much lower profile move, smaller IPO candidate Chunkong Technology has quietly delayed its own New York offering plan, becoming the first formal casualty of fading sentiment. Chukong’s decision looks particularly significant because the company operates in the mobile gaming space, which is supposed to be one of the fastest-growth areas in China’s tech world. Read Full Post…
Market watchers are hailing the modest success of the new listing by online cosmetics seller Jumei International (NYSE: JMEI), which managed a respectable pricing and trading debut in New York despite waning sentiment towards Chinese Internet IPOs. I would agree with that view somewhat, since the company’s shares could have easily fallen in their trading debut but instead ended up rising a solid 10 percent on their first trading day. But I’d also advise market watchers to check the bottom line, which saw Jumei slash the size of its original offering by nearly two-thirds due to weak demand. Read Full Post…
The big IPO news of the day is Alibaba’s debut public filing for its long-awaited New York listing, but a flurry of other news in the space is continuing the recent stream of downbeat signals from the sputtering market. Leading the headlines are the latest terms for an offering by online cosmetics seller Jumei.com and a debut public filing for online recruitment firm Zhaopin.com, neither of which look too positive. The signals were equally negative from recently listed car information website Autohome (NYSE: ATHM), whose shares dived after it filed a fairly respectable first-quarter earnings report. Read Full Post…
