Hong Kong SAR

Bank of China has filed an application to list its aircraft lessor in Hong Kong in a deal that could raise as much as $2bn.

Hutchison China MediTech (Chi-Med), the drug-making arm of Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing’s Hutchison Whampoa, has opened books for its $100m IPO on the Nasdaq.

Two Hong Kong-based bankers are set to leave boutique investment bank China Renaissance by the middle of the year.

Jiayuan International Group raised HK$1.12bn ($144.16m) from its Hong Kong IPO after selling shares at the top of the marketing range, in a deal driven mainly by Chinese investors.

In this round-up: Hong Kong cross-border trade settlement fell again at the start of the year, RMB deposits were steady in Hong Kong but falling in Singapore, Brics New Development Bank will set up in Shanghai, and PBoC said a swap line with Bank of Russia had been activated. Plus, a recap of our top stories this week.

Union Medical Healthcare is due to close books on its HK$951m ($122m) IPO in Hong Kong on Friday evening, with pricing expected over the weekend, according to a source close to the transaction.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group is said to be in advanced talks with banks for a borrowing of around $4bn.

A rarely seen product is set to return to the Asian securitization market with fixed income specialist SC Lowy and UOB Asset Management (UOBAM) gearing up for a $400m collateralized loan obligation (CLO). The transaction will be the first non-bank originated Asian CLO in years, but the structured finance community is sceptical about the market’s potential, writes Rev Hui.

As an ex-banker, I am used to hearing rants about the miserable fees paid by Asia’s state-owned issuers, but even I struggle to comprehend the lengths dealers must now go to if they want to win a deal.

UBS has created an new Asia Debt Financing Group, combining its existing debt and leveraged financing teams, according to an internal memo seen by GlobalCapital Asia.

Nomura’s head of investment banking for Asia ex-Japan is retiring from the bank, one of a number of senior staff who are set to leave the firm, according to internal memos seen by GlobalCapital Asia.

IBM exited its entire position in Chinese tech firm Lenovo this week, raising HK$1.17bn ($150m) via a block sale. It was able to offload the stock at the top end of guidance after a flood of demand from Asian hedge funds.