China's Kuaishou seeks to raise up to US$5.42 billion in Hong Kong IPO

REUTERS: Chinese online video company Kuaishou Technology on Tuesday said it was looking to raise as much as HKUS$42 billion (US$5.42 billion) in an initial public offering (IPO).

The Tencent-backed online video site, which operates apps that allow user-uploaded videos as well as live-streaming programs, said it would issue 365.2 million shares at between HKUS$105 and HKUS$115 a share.

On Monday, a term sheet reviewed by Reuters had shown there was a so-called greenshoe option to sell an additional 54.78 million shares in the 30 days after listing which could take the total amount raised up to US$5.7 billion to US$6.2 billion.

A greenshoe option, or over-allotment, allows companies to issue more shares in an IPO when there is greater demand from participants during the initial offering.

The IPO will value the firm at between US$55.6 billion and US$60 billion, pre greenshoe, and between US$56.3 billion and US$61.7 billion if the extra shares are sold.

ByteDance rival Kuaishou needs to raise US$6.2 billion to become the largest IPO in Hong Kong in more than a year, surpassing Budweiser Brewing Company's US$5.75 billion IPO in September 2019.

(US$1 = 7.7516 Hong Kong dollars)

(Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru; Editing by Amy Caren Daniel)