Kingsoft Cloud latest China firm to seek Hong Kong dual primary listing

Kingsoft Cloud Holdings

28/07/2022 02:48

HONG KONG, July 28 (Reuters) - Cloud computer firm Kingsoft
Cloud  KC.O  has filed documents for a dual primary listing in
Hong Kong, becoming the latest Chinese company to seek a
diversified listing in the Asian financial hub.
    The New York-listed firm filed its initial prospectus with
the Hong Kong Stock Exchange late on Wednesday to press ahead
with the listing, which it had flagged in March it was
exploring.
    E-commerce company Alibaba Group  9988.HK  said on Tuesday
it was seeking to convert its secondary listing in Hong Kong to
a dual primary listing which would allow it to apply for Stock
Connect, the scheme which makes it easier for mainland Chinese
investors to buy Hong Kong stocks.
    Secondary listed stocks are not included in the Stock
Connect scheme.
    Kingsoft Cloud, in a statement, did not identify a time line
or how much it could look to raise in the Hong Kong listing.
    The company has not decided on the size of the deal which
would depend on its share price closer to the launch of the
transaction, said one source with direct knowledge of the
matter. 
    The source could not be named as the information was not yet
made public.
    Kingsoft Cloud did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
    The company, which listed in New York in May 2020, has
endured a volatile period, with its shares down 77% year to date
amidst the Chinese regulatory crackdown of the country's tech
sector.
    Its shares were sold in the IPO at $17 each and the stock
closed on Wednesday at $3.47, giving it a market capitalisation
of $845 million.

 (Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Hong Kong; Editing by
Muralikumar Anantharaman)
 ((Scott.Murdoch@thomsonreuters.com;))