China's AgBank seeks record $23 billion IPO

HONG KONG  (June 15, 2010) : The Agricultural Bank of China is seeking to raise more than $23 billion through a dual Hong Kong and Shanghai listing, according to documents on Monday, putting it on course for the world's biggest IPO. The initial public offering by AgBank, founded by Mao Zedong in the 1950s as the central bank's rural arm, had previously been touted as high as $30 billion, but has been scaled back as China's stock markets have dropped by more than a fifth this year and global markets have been spooked by a euro zone debt crisis.

Over the weekend, China's second-largest wind turbine maker, Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co, pulled its $1.2 billion IPO, the fifth Hong Kong offering to be shelved since last month The Hong Kong portion of the AgBank offering sought to raise up to $14.4 billion - a figure that includes a 15 percent overallotment set aside for the after-market, according to a term sheet obtained by Reuters on Monday.

The total amount AgBank is looking to raise, including its Shanghai A-share offering and the overallotment, is up to $27.2 billion, based on a prospectus filed to Chinese regulators, which said the Hong Kong offer would be 53 percent of the total deal.

Copyright Reuters, 2010