BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Guotai Haitong Securities (Guotai Haitong) embraced recently a pleasant 3.88 billion-Hong Kong dollar (about 499 million U.S. dollars) sale of 7-year zero-coupon exchangeable bonds by its Hong Kong affiliate Guotai Junan Holdings Ltd.
The bonds, rated BBB+ by Standard & Poor's and convertible to ordinary H-shares of Guotai Haitong's another affiliate in Hong Kong, Guotai Junan International Holdings Ltd. (01788.HK), are irrevocably guaranteed by parent of the issuer, Guotai Junan Financial Holdings Ltd., also a wholly-owned subsidiary of Guotai Haitong.
Confident in China's assets and long-term prospects of Guotai Haitong and its affiliates, institutional investors including long-term funds and hedge funds from Asia-Pacific region, Europe and the Americas actively participated in the subscription.
As these exchangeable bonds are puttable by the end of the third and fifth year since their value date, they were issued at prices up to 103.5 percent of their par value or yields as low as -0.49 percent.
Currently when U.S. dollar-denominated financing costs keep climbing, the zero-coupon bonds are helpful to optimize funding costs for the company, with proceeds to be used for refinancing of maturing overseas debts.
After Guotai Junan Financial Holdings Ltd. was assigned BBB+ long-term issuer rating in August this year, the offering, its public debut on the international capital market, marked further enrichment of the overseas financing vehicles of the company and Guotai Haitong.
(Edited by Duan Jing with Xinhua Silk Road, duanjing@xinhua.org)
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