2 March, 2017
King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) has advised Xinhu (BVI) Holding Company Limited as its US and PRC counsel on its US$700 million 6.00% guaranteed senior notes offering due 2020 guaranteed by Xinhu Zhongbao Co., Ltd (Xinhu Zhongbao). The transaction marks the largest debut high yield bond issuance by a PRC company since January 2013, according to the Bloomberg database.
Commenting on the deal, Hong Kong-based partner Hao Zhou said, “We are delighted to have supported our client with this record breaking transaction. It is widely anticipated that high-yield bond issuances will surge in 2017. Statistics have shown that the total deal volume for high-yield bond issuances in Asia outside of Australasia and Japan amounted to US$9.56 billion as of 13 February – the strongest start to any year since 2000.”
KWM’s international DCM team has advised on 16 high-yield bond issuances since 2015, all of which were by first time issuers. “All high yield practitioners know that debut issuances require tremendous expertise, resources and commitment. With a proven track record, our team continues to be busy with a strong pipeline in this space.” Hao Zhou said.
Xinhu Zhongbao, one of the largest A-share listed company in Zhejiang province, is principally engaged in real estate development, finance and other investments. It was ranked among 2016 top 10 Shanghai and Shenzhen Exchange-listed real estate companies by overall strength jointly determined by the Development Research Center of the State Council, Real Estate Institute of Tsinghua University and China Index Academy based on a comprehensive set of criteria, including size, economy value added, investment value and financial risk management.
