Chinese courier giant SF aims to raise up to $3 billion in Hong Kong listing – sources

By Julie Zhu and Scott Murdoch

HONG KONG/SYDNEY (Reuters) – China’s largest express delivery company SF Holding Co Ltd plans to raise up to $3 billion in a second listing in Hong Kong as soon as later this year, in what would be one of the largest public offerings in the city, two sources said.

The courier group, regarded as China’s answer to FedEx Corp (NYSE:) and DHL, has picked Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:), Huatai Securities and JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:) to work on the listing, which could raise $2 billion to $3 billion, said the sources with knowledge of the matter.

The Shenzhen-listed company, known for its flagship SF Express delivery business, has started preparations for the Hong Kong listing and aims to file the prospectus with the Hong Kong exchange by June, one of the sources said.

The sources declined to be identified as the information is private.

SF Holding, which has a market value of 267 billion yuan ($38.63 billion), did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. Goldman and Huatai did not respond to requests for comment.

JPMorgan declined to comment.

Bloomberg News on Friday first reported SF Holding’s listing plans, citing people familiar with the matter.

The offering would provide a boost for Hong Kong’s capital markets, roiled by volatility across the global financial markets due to rising interest rates, high inflation and global political tensions.

The Asian financial hub saw a 53% drop in the value of initial public offerings in the first quarter of 2023, according to Refinitiv data.

So far this year $1.49 billion has been raised in new share sales, marginally higher than the $1.2 billion raised in the same period of 2022, as per Refinitiv.

Established in the southern Chinese port city of Shunde in 1993 by chairman Wang Wei, SF has grown into a leading player in the world’s largest express delivery market, with services covering almost all of the country.

Its express delivery business covers nearly 100 countries overseas including the United States and Japan, according to its 2022 annual report.

SF went public in Shenzhen in 2017 and listed two of its units – SF Real Estate Investment Trust and Hangzhou SF Intra-City Industrial – in Hong Kong in 2021.

That year it became the controlling shareholder of Hong Kong’s Kerry Logistics Network Ltd after acquiring a 52% stake of the company.

($1 = 6.9115 renminbi)