China’s Sunshine Insurance to Seek HK Stock Exchange Nod for $1B IPO: Sources

China’s Sunshine Insurance Group Co. is planning to seek Hong Kong stock exchange approval for its initial public offering as soon as next week, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Beijing-based company may start gauging investor demand once approval is obtained and seek a listing as soon as November, said one of the people. The insurer could raise about $1 billion in the first-time share sale, the people said, who asked not to be identified as the information is private.

Sunshine Insurance has won the approval of China’s securities watchdog for its Hong Kong listing plans. It has been authorized to sell a maximum of 3.97 billion shares in the offering. The company filed pre-listing documents with the Hong Kong stock exchange in April.

Deliberations are ongoing and Sunshine Insurance’s listing hearing could still be delayed with IPO details subject to changes, the people said. An external representative for Sunshine Insurance declined to comment.

Hong Kong’s equity capital market remains muted as rising rates and surging volatility kept many issuers away. Companies have raised about $10.8 billion through IPOs in Hong Kong this year, down from $37.6 billion for the same period last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Founded in 2004, Sunshine Insurance operates businesses including life and health insurance, property and casualty insurance and asset management, according to its preliminary prospectus. The Life and P&C units had 2,895 branches in China as of Dec. 31. Huatai International, China International Capital Corp., UBS Group AG and CCB International are joint sponsors of the deal.

Photograph: The Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. (HKEX) logo is displayed atop a gong at the HKEX Connect Hall in Hong Kong, China, on Wednesday, June 10, 2020. Photo credit: Billy H.C. Kwok/Bloomberg.