HONG KONG — Shandong International Trust Co., Ltd. (“Shandong International Trust” or the “Company”, Stock code:1697) today announces the details of its global offering plan and the listing of its H shares (the “Global Offering”) on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the “Stock Exchange”).
Shandong International Trust is a comprehensive financial and wealth management service provider in China, utilizing the Company’s trust products to provide diversified financing and investment services. It is a trust company licensed by the CBRC and is permitted to provide financing and investing solutions across the real economy, capital markets and money markets in China. The Company has two major business lines, which are the trust business and proprietary business. The Company has successfully withstood economic and market fluctuations over the past few years and achieved rapid growth. The trust AUM of all of the Company’s trusts increased from RMB112,392 million as of 31 December 2011 to RMB254,637 million as of 31 December 2016, representing a CAGR of 17.8% and remained almost unchanged at RMB254,499 million as of 31 May 2017. The Company ranked 6th among all trust companies the controlling shareholders of which have local government background and ranked 25th among all trust companies in China in terms of total trust assets in 2016 according to Wind Info.
While Shandong International Trust is based in Shandong, one of the wealthiest provinces in China, the Company has been conducting business on a nation-wide basis and has established regional business units in Beijing, Qingdao, Shanghai, Xiamen, Nanjing, Changsha and Xi’an. As of 31 May 2017, the Company’s counterparty clients were located in a total of 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in China. The Company has established a large and high-quality client base through nearly 30 years of operation. As of 31 May 2017, the Company had provided financing services to approximately 2,100 counterparty clients; the Company had 53,346 trustor client accounts, including 2,266 corporate and institutional investors and 51,080 High-Net-Worth Individuals (HNWIs).
Lucion Group, the Company’s Controlling Shareholder, is one of the most important investment and financing platforms of the Shandong provincial government and holds investments in a wide variety of industries such as financial services, venture capital, culture and media, tourism, infrastructure, real estate, energy and technologies, and has achieved full coverage of finance, investment, industry and commerce. The strong background of existing shareholders and their abundant resources and expansive business networks created significant synergies with the Company’s business and provided strong support for the development of the Company’s business.
Shandong International Trust was rated “Class A” (the highest rating attainable) in the industry-wide rating organized by the China Trustee Association under the supervision of the CBRC for the years of 2015 and 2016 based on comprehensive assessment of the capital strength, risk management, incremental value and social responsibility. The Company was rated “Excellent (AAA)” (the highest rating attainable) in the performance assessment of all local financial institutions in Shandong organized by the Shandong Provincial Finance Bureau in 2016 based on comprehensive assessment of the profitability, asset quality, liquidity and business growth.
The Global Offering comprises a total of 647,075,000 H Shares (comprising 588,250,000 H Shares to be issued by Shandong International Trust and 58,825,000 Sale Shares to be offered by the Selling Shareholders, subject to the Over-allotment Option). The number of Hong Kong Offer Shares is 64,708,000 H Shares (subject to reallocation) and the number of International Offer Shares is 582,367,000 H Shares (comprising 523,542,000 H Shares to be offered by Shandong International Trust and 58,825,000 Sale Shares to be offered by the Selling Shareholders, subject to reallocation and the Over-allotment Option).
The Hong Kong Public Offering will commence at 9:00 a.m. on 28 November 2017 (Tuesday), and is expected to close at 12:00 noon on 1 December 2017 (Friday). The latest time to complete electronic applications under White Form eIPO is at 11:30 a.m. on 1 December 2017 (Friday). Dealing in the H Shares on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange is expected to commence at 9:00 a.m. on 8 December 2017 (Friday). The H Shares will be traded in board lots of 1,000 H Shares each. The stock code of the Company on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange is 1697.
Shandong International Trust intends to use the net proceeds from the Global Offering (after deduction of underwriting commissions and estimated expenses payable by Shandong International Trust in relation to the Global Offering) to strengthen its capital base to support the expansion of the Company’s business via the establishment of new subsidiaries designated for particular business, and the acquisition of equity interests in financial institutions in the PRC and overseas possessing the necessary licenses. Net proceeds from the Global Offering will also significantly increase the Company’s Net Capital and thereby enable the Company to significantly expand its various types of trust business. The Company expects to combine net proceeds from the Global Offering with its existing proprietary assets and allocate them into different asset classes in order to maintain and increase their value, create synergies with the Company’s trust business and maintain sufficient liquidity for its business operation.
As China implements its “Go Global” strategy represented by “The Belt and Road Initiative”, and as Renminbi increasingly becomes an internationally recognized currency, the Company plans to commence the operation of Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) business as the entry point for the expansion of its international business and the Company is actively applying for the relevant business qualifications. The Company will also seek to obtain financial service licenses in selected overseas jurisdictions. Through such international expansion, the Company plans to enhance its ability to manage overseas assets and allocation of its clients’ assets into overseas markets, obtains access to overseas low-cost financing channels and achieves synergy between its domestic and international businesses so that the Company can provide one-stop, consolidated and improved services to its clients.
Looking ahead, based on the status of its current business development, and as China’s economic development has entered the “new normal” stage, the Company intends to take advantage of the changes. The Company intends to continue to strengthen traditional business, enhance active management capabilities, rapidly expand trust business that provide asset management and wealth management services, capture new business opportunities through continuous innovation, and build up brand image as a high-quality and trustworthy financial service provider in China.