Greater China

China East Education Holdings has launched bookbuilding for its potential HK$5.3bn ($681m) IPO.

Chinese e-commerce and tech behemoth Alibaba Group Holding is planning its second listing, which will most likely be on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Amid uncertainty and volatility from the US-China trade war, the move is being hailed as a long-overdue homecoming. Gina Lee reports.

Chinese authorities took over Baoshang Bank this week, the first time the state has taken control of a financial institution in two decades. Despite the central bank promising to guarantee most deposits held by Baoshang, yields on similarly rated banks’ outstanding short-term debt jumped as issuance volumes tumbled — leading the central bank to take the ‘unusual’ move of injecting liquidity into the market for three consecutive days. Rebecca Feng reports.

South Korean oil refiner GS Caltex Corp raised $300m from a senior bond on Wednesday.

The Hong Kong financial regulator has fined China Merchants Securities’ local arm for breaching its IPO code of conduct while working on the listing of China Metal Recycling.

Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group kicked off the roadshow for its Hong Kong listing this week, with up to HK$7.9bn ($1bn) of proceeds in its sights. The deal got off to a strong start with the help of a cornerstone group that included Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, as well as an early turnout from international institutions. Jonathan Breen reports.

Bigger is not always better. Just ask Huarong Asset Management, which appointed 30 banks to manage a deal that caused headaches for bankers and investors alike.

Agile Group Holdings raised $600m from its latest perpetual bond sale on Monday. But the execution of the transaction came under fire from bankers away from the deal, and those on the trade admitted that things did not go as planned.

Bankers of my generation all know a bit of the dead language of the Romans. But I was greatly surprised when I met a young banker who had also gone through Wheelock’s Latin textbook.

Equity markets turned volatile again this week as trade tensions between the US and China escalated further, making accelerated equity sales more difficult.

JH Educational Technology will hit the road for its Hong Kong Stock Exchange listing after it completes investor education this Friday.

Chinese online tutorial platform GSX Techedu is fully covered for its listing on the New York Stock Exchange.