Greater China

Shanghai Dazhong Public Utilities Co and VPower Group International Holdings seem unfazed by any market mayhem that may follow the US presidential election, as both prepare to launch $300m Hong Kong IPOs on Thursday this week.

The Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect is set to go live by the end of the month with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZE) announcing on Monday that all southbound participants need to be ready by November 20.

Kasikorn Asset Management broke new ground last month when it became the first Thai entity to attain a renminbi qualified institutional investor (RQFII) licence. In an exclusive interview with GlobalRMB the CIO of KAsset, Navin Intharasombat, said this is more than just a symbolic move as it is also the first opportunity for Thai-domiciled funds to invest in China directly.

Law firm Clifford Chance has boosted its corporate practice in Asia by hiring partner Frank Yuen, who brings a wealth of equity capital markets experience to the team.

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is looking to build out local payments and investment infrastructure to make the country’s financial markets fully RMB-capable, Adnan Mohamad Zahid, assistant governor, said in a recent speech.

Primary activity in the Asia ex-Japan bond market was quiet on Monday as issuers and investors alike put activities on pause while they wait for the US presidential election results to be announced on Wednesday local time.

Zhou Hei Ya International Holdings Co raised HK$2.5bn ($321.8m) after pricing its Hong Kong IPO towards the bottom of the indicative range last Friday.

China Nuclear Engineering Group Co pushed out its debut dim sum deal last Friday to get ahead of the US election this week. Despite the volatility, the transaction garnered Rmb2.7bn ($399.3m) in orders, with the issuer bagging Rmb1.5bn.

CICC is acquiring mainland rival China Investment Securities Co in an all-share deal worth Rmb16.7bn ($2.5bn), as the lender looks to scale up in wealth management and retail brokerage.

The US Department of Financial Services has fined the New York branch of Agricultural Bank of China $215m for violating local anti-money laundering (AML) laws. The regulator also said that the bank obscured dollar clearing transactions of Chinese and Russian companies, apparently by issuing counterfeit and falsified invoices.

China’s Huishang Bank Corp sealed a lucky $888m additional tier one transaction on Thursday. The deal was not only the Chinese lender’s inaugural dollar-denominated AT1 but also the first from a city commercial bank in the country.

Bank of China grabbed market attention on Thursday with the inaugural green covered bond from the Mainland. The deal’s unique structure garnered international attention, supporting the country's pursuit of green bond leadership.