Zijin Gold International, a wholly owned unit of China’s Zijin Mining, aims to raise HK$24.98 billion (US$3.21 billion) in an initial public offering (IPO) that would be Hong Kong’s second largest this year.
Zijin Gold launched the sale of 349 million shares at an offer price of HK$71.59 per share on Friday, with the offering running until noon on Wednesday, according to its prospectus released on Friday. The deal would be second only to the US$5.24 billion May IPO of Contemporary Amperex Technology, the world’s largest maker of battery packs for electric vehicles.
The listing is a spin-off of the international unit of Hong Kong-listed Zijin Mining, one of China’s largest miners of gold and copper. The parent company will own 86.7 per cent of Zijin Gold after the IPO, or 85 per cent if an overallotment option is exercised to expand the offering by 15 per cent. Retail investors will have access to 10 per cent of Zijin Gold’s shares, with the rest allocated to international investors.
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The price of gold has gained almost 40 per cent this year – it was US$3,682 per ounce on Friday – as global investors, including central banks, went on a buying spree seeking safe-haven investments amid trade uncertainty.
“The IPO of Zijin Gold comes as the gold price has kept breaking records and many Hong Kong-listed gold-related stocks have performed strongly this year,” said Kenny Ng Lai-yin, a strategist at Everbright Securities International. “The offering is expected to be popular among both international and local retail investors.”
The deal has attracted 29 cornerstone investors who subscribed to a combined HK$12.47 billion worth of shares. The figure represents about 50 per cent of the offering – the maximum under a new allotment rule introduced last month.
The four largest cornerstone investors, including Singapore wealth fund GIC and private equity firm Hillhouse, will each buy US$150 million worth of shares, while fund companies BlackRock and Schroders will invest US$120 million each, according to the prospectus.
The deal has set aside 5 per cent of the shares as a preferential offering for shareholders of Zijin Mining.
The headquarters of Zijin Mining is pictured in Longyan, in China’s southeastern Fujian province. Photo: Shutterstock alt=The headquarters of Zijin Mining is pictured in Longyan, in China’s southeastern Fujian province. Photo: Shutterstock>
Shares of Zijin Gold would start trading on the stock exchange on September 29 under stock code 2259, the prospectus said. Morgan Stanley and Citic Securities are the joint sponsors of the deal.
Zijin Gold said it would use a third of the proceeds to complete its US$1.2 billion acquisition of the Kazakhstan Raygorodok Gold Mine, which would increase its gold reserves and output, according to the prospectus. About half of the funds would be used to upgrade existing mines over the next five years, with the rest earmarked for general working capital.
“The outlook for gold prices remains strong, as the US has already started a rate-cut cycle and many central banks continue to invest in gold,” said Kenny Tang Sing-hing, chairman of the Hong Kong Institute of Financial Analysts and Professional Commentators. “The many international gold mines operated by Zijin are having strong output. All these factors will make the IPO a red-hot deal.”
Zijin Gold, established in 2007, owns Zijin Mining’s gold mines outside mainland China, including in Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Australia, Guyana, Colombia, Suriname, Ghana and Papua New Guinea.
Its annual gold output grew 21.4 per cent annually between 2022 and 2024, making it the world’s 11th biggest producer last year, according to the listing prospectus.
The company produced 1.5 million ounces of gold in 2024 and had 26.1 million ounces in reserve, according to data compiled by market researcher Frost & Sullivan.
In the first eight months of the year, IPO fundraising in Hong Kong reached HK$134.5 billion, soaring 579 per cent from a year earlier, according to bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing. A total of 59 companies listed in the first eight months, up 37 per cent from a year earlier, it added.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP’s Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2025 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
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