Hong Kong tycoons invest in ABC IPO

Li Ka-shing and Lee Shau-kee, two of Hong Kong’s billionaire tycoons, have subscribed to the Hong Kong segment of the initial public offering of Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), with each purchasing US$129 million worth of shares in China’s third-largest bank, the Wall Street Journal reported. The investments will be subject to a one-year lock-up period. Investment banks supporting ABC’s offering continue to pursue other cornerstone investors in the Middle East, Europe, Australia and Japan to subscribe to between 30% and 40% of the total offering. ABC’s IPO is expected to raise as much as US$28 billion in simultaneous mainland and Hong Kong market listings.