GIC, Millennium Management and Hillhouse Investment are among heavyweights that are set to invest in Zijin Gold International’s initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong, according to people familiar with the matter.
BlackRock, Fidelity International and Baillie Gifford were also among cornerstone investors that were poised to get around half of the IPO shares, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is not public.
The line-up of marquee names investing in Zijin Gold signals the world’s biggest listing since May will be in high demand. The company was set to start taking orders from other investors and the public as soon as Friday in a deal that may fetch more than US$3 billion, the people said.
Discussions are ongoing and the allocations were still being finalised, the people said. Cornerstone investors in Hong Kong typically get a guaranteed allocation of shares on condition they agree to hold on to them for six months.
Fidelity declined to comment. Neither Zijin Gold nor the other investors replied to requests for comment.
The gold producer is coming to market at a time when prices of the precious metal extend their rise – it broke another record this week – providing a tailwind for miners to raise funds for further expansion or pay off debt. For example, Merdeka Gold Resources is planning to raise more than US$280 million in what would be Indonesia’s largest IPO this year.
