Chinese Investment Bank AMTD International Files For US IPO

Hong Kong-based financial services firm and investment bank AMTD International has filed to raise $200 million in an initial public offering (IPO) in the US, according to an SEC filing.

AMTD, which claims to be one of the largest Hong Kong-based financial institutions, has not specified the number of shares it intends to offer and the amount mentioned in the filing is likely a placeholder to calculate the filing fee.

It plans to list on either the Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange and it has not specified a ticker name yet.

The company, which was founded in 2003 and booked $155 million in revenue for the 12 months ended March 31, 2019, said in its filing that it will use the proceeds to invest in its business and infrastructure expansion and finance potential acquisitions or investments in complementary businesses.

The company’s expansion plans include setting up new subsidiaries, acquiring new talent, and applying for new business licences in other jurisdictions.

AMTD offers investment banking services, including equity underwriting, debt underwriting, advisory (on credit rating, financing, and mergers and acquisitions transactions), securities brokerage, institutional sales and distribution, and research, among others.

According to a CIC report cited by the company, AMTD ranked first among all independent investment banking firms in Asia as measured by both the number and the aggregate offering size of Hong Kong and US IPOs completed in 2018 and the first quarter of 2019.

It also ranked ninth and third as a bookrunner among all investment banking firms as measured by the number of Hong Kong IPOs priced in 2018 and in the first quarter of 2019, respectively.

“We are one of the few financial institutions with extensive financial industry knowledge and experience across Greater China that is majority-owned and managed by local Hong Kong entrepreneurs and professionals,” the company said in its SEC filing.

This genuine “Hong Kong-owned” identity, according to AMTD, positions the firm to play an instrumental role in connecting local clients from Hong Kong and China with global capital markets

In 2018, AMTD recorded dividend and gain related to disposed investment of HK$99.2 million ($12.6 million). For the three months ended March 31, 2019, it did not record dividend and gain related to disposed investment as its investee companies typically do not distribute dividend in the first quarter of each year.

For the year ended December 31, 2018 and the three months ended March 31, 2019, it recorded net fair value changes on financial assets at fair value through profit or loss of HK$256.5 million ($32.7 million) and HK$124.2 million ($15.8 million), respectively, both from its strategic investment business.

AMTD International is 95.3 per cent owned and controlled by AMTD Group, which was founded by CK Hutchison Holding Limited.