Asia Pacific

Antengene Corp, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, is set to launch the roadshow for its Hong Kong IPO next week after wrapping up pre-deal investor education, according to a source close to the listing.

The Reserve Bank of Australia has announced plans to explore the potential uses and implications of a central bank digital currency using distributed ledger technology. The RBA follows the Banque de France, which last year worked with Société Générale to settle a crypto covered bond — a product that offers a number of ways to deploy blockchain technology.

Credit Suisse names Philippines head – MUFG hires from Mandiri – HKEX expands WVR scheme

Few readers of this column will have been able to avoid the temptation this week to continually hit refresh, hoping for a morsel of news on the US election. Whether you’re red, blue or polka-dot, the zig and zag of the election results has been compelling theatre.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange stunned the market on Tuesday by halting Ant Group’s $34bn IPO, set to be the largest listing in history, just two days before the company’s planned stock market debut. The extraordinary move is expected to delay the listing by at least six months. It will also force investors to revalue the company, write Jonathan Breen and Addison Gong.

Carlos ‘Sonny’ Dominguez, finance minister of the Philippines, has been forced to swap long-term planning for emergency responses to the coronavirus. He talks to GlobalCapital about what comes next.

Mercedes-Benz Leasing Co sold its first auto lease asset-backed note in China’s interbank market this week, navigating a number of hurdles to launch the Rmb4bn ($600m) deal.

Asia’s dollar bond issuers hit pause this week as all eyes turned to the outcome of the nail-bitingly close US presidential election. With the result still uncertain on Thursday, but signs showing a Joe Biden victory as a possibility, some bankers in the region reckon the debt market may be at full throttle from next week. Morgan Davis reports.

Chinese property manager Jinke Smart Services Group has launched its IPO. It is aiming to pocket up to HK$6.3bn ($815.9m) from the deal.

China’s decision to clamp down on Ant Group has derailed an IPO of at least $34bn, despite execution being finished last week. The move appears to be little more than political muscle-flexing by Beijing. The real winners will be the country’s critics.

Gland Pharma, a subsidiary of Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group, has set the final terms for its Rp64.8bn ($866.5m) IPO in India.

Zhaoheng Hydropower (Hong Kong) has missed a payment on a 2017 dollar loan. It had extended the maturity on that deal earlier this year.