Xiaomi confirms $6.1b HK float target

Chinese mainland smartphone maker Xiaomi announced it aims to raise $6.1 billion in its blockbuster Hong Kong listing this July.

It will be the biggest IPO globally since 2016 despite a reduction in its valuation and the postponement of its Chinese depositary receipt plan.

Xiaomi will take orders from institutional investors through June 28, and launch the IPO on July 9.

The tech giant is said to have previously aimed to raise $10 billion, split between mainland and Hong Kong offerings. The fundraising, which usually comes in at 10 percent of a company's valuation, shrank proportionally with its curtailed valuation, which fell from $100 billion to below $70 billion, according to local media reports.

The first issuer to take advantage of Hong Kong's new rules on dual-class shares, Xiaomi is reportedly planning to issue around 2.18 billion shares, with 65 percent of those being primary shares, at an indicative price range of HK$17 to HK$22 ($2.17 to $2.80) apiece. That would make it the biggest float since Postal Savings Bank of China Co Ltd's $7.4 billion IPO two years ago.

The leading phone maker has seven star institutions as cornerstone investors, including mainland telecoms service provider China Mobile, United States chipmaker Qualcomm and state-backed investment firm CICFH Entertainment. The seven will take a combined 10 percent of the offering, according to Reuters.

Tencent reported earlier that the cornerstone investors are obliged to invest at least $50 million each, and that their investment comes with an "unduly long" lock-up period－in which they cannot sell on the shares－as smaller institutional investors are advised to take a lock-up period of up to two years.

The long lock-up period and varying opinions over the company's valuation have deterred some interested parties from investing in the mainland smartphone maker, and are believed to be the main driving forces behind its postponed CDR application.

Xiaomi said earlier this week it has asked the Chinese regulator to postpone its plan to sell CDRs, and that it has decided to list in Hong Kong first, without providing reasons. CDRs allow mainland investors to trade shares of companies that are listed overseas on domestic bourses.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd CEO Charles Li Xiaojia said after a luncheon on Thursday that he believed the delay was Xiaomi's deliberate choice. After it weighted all factors following discussions with the China Securities Regulatory Commission the firm concluded launching CDRs at the current time might be "risky".

Li added that HKEx will not interfere in the valuation of new economy listings.