2010-12-22 16:32

Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong's richest man, is preparing what may be the first yuan-denominated initial public offering (IPO) in the city in the first half of 2011, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing two people with knowledge of the matter.

Li, 82, hired Citic Securities International Co to lead the sale of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) of shares in a real estate investment trust backed by the Oriental Plaza development in Beijing, said one of the people, who declined to be identified.

Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd's chief executive officer Charles Li has proposed allowing yuan-denominated share sales in the city, the report said. Chinese-currency deposits at Hong Kong banks swelled to a record 217.1 billion yuan in October, according to Hong Kong Monetary Authority data.

"If reaction to the IPO is good, it may very well create a trend for other Hong Kong developers to follow," said Lee Wee Liat, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Samsung Securities Ltd.

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Companies have sold more than 62 billion yuan of bonds denominated in the Chinese currency in Hong Kong since 2007, according to a Dec 20 Bank of China (Hong Kong) Ltd statement, the report said.

Li was listed as the world's 14th-richest person in March by Forbes magazine, compared with 16th a year earlier, after his wealth increased to $21 billion, the report said.