Morgan Stanley

Chinese technology giant Xiaomi Corp kicked off bookbuilding for its up to HK$48bn ($6.1bn) Hong Kong IPO on Thursday, set to be the largest globally in nearly two years, after a series of twists and turns that put it firmly on the market’s radar. Jonathan Breen reports.

Mumbai-based property developer Oberoi Realty has raised Rp12bn ($176m) from a qualified institutional placement.

WuXi Biologics’ controlling shareholder has raised HK$3.96bn ($504.6m) after selling a block of shares in the company.

Smartphone and devices manufacturer Xiaomi Corp has put the China Depository Receipt (CDR) portion of its $10bn IPO on hold, opting to list in Hong Kong first.

CYBG has agreed to buy Virgin Money for £1.7bn, paving the way for a new major challenger bank on the UK high street. The combined bank will be strong in mortgages but have only £7.6bn of corporate and SME loans.

It is a mark of how far the market has come from a barren week at the end of May that not just one, but three deals, totalling €2.75bn, were priced on Friday. The European Central Bank meeting and the expectation of a deal from German pharmaceuticals company Bayer played their part in the issuers’ decisions on timing and the order books justified those choices.

Xiaomi Corp has said that about half of its expected $10bn dual listing in Hong Kong and China will come from the offering of China Depositary Receipts to Mainland investors.

German chemicals producer BASF found overwhelming demand for its first sterling corporate bond of 2018 this week. The issuer’s £250m ($330m) offering was more than six times oversubscribed on Thursday, as sterling investors clamoured for a rare non-UK credit.

Wise Talent Information Technology, owner of recruitment website Liepin.com, has opened books for its up to HK$3.1bn ($398.1m) Hong Kong IPO.

Chinese used car e-commerce platform Uxin began bookbuilding on Thursday for an IPO that could raise up to $475m.

The IPO of Adyen, the Dutch payments processing company, is due to be priced at €240 a share, the top of the initial range, after the deal has attracted “unprecedented” levels of interest from investors.

Leisure entrepreneur Eric Wilborts pleased the market on Thursday night by offering up his entire stake in Basic Fit, the Dutch operator of low cost gyms and health clubs, in response to a number of reverse inquiries from investors.