IPO Fever Hits Hong Kong Market as 1-in-20 People Try to Buy
- Tencent unit China Literature draws huge investor demand
- Locked-up funds drive Hong Kong interbank rates higher
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Hong Kong demand for new share sales has hit fever pitch, with 417,000 people applying for lots in Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s online bookstore unit -- more than 5 percent of the city’s population.
China Literature Ltd.’s retail offering was 625 times oversubscribed, according to the company. That locked up at least HK$520 billion ($67 billion), or a third of the city’s monetary base, the South China Morning Post reported. It’s easy to see why the clamor: China Literature’s shares surged as much as 100 percent on their Wednesday debut before closing up 86 percent.