Retail in Asia

In Markets

Topsports raises $1.01 billion in IPO

Topsports

China’s Topsports raised more than $1 billion in its initial public offering in Hong Kong for late September 2019.

SEE ALSO : Topshop on Asos in late September

The biggest sportswear retailer in China Topsports raised $1.01 billion on the IPO, made up of 930 million shares priced at HK$8.50 (US$1.08). The share price was at the lower end of the Beijing-based company’s share range, which was projected to be between HK$8.30 to HK$10.10, according to a term sheet.

Topsports had aimed to raise up to $1.2 billion, the term sheet showed. The firm now has a market capitalization of about $6.74 billion with shares to list October 10.

The IPO was sponsored by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.

The latest listing comes despite Hong Kong’s stock market turning in the worst performance among developed markets in the third quarter, reported the Financial Times, as pro-democracy protesters keep disrupting the routine of the city.

Topsports manufactures and distributes sportswear for global brands including Adidas and Nike. The company is backed by Chinese private equity giants CDH Investments and Hillhouse and operates more than 8,000 outlets across China.

In 2017, it was was taken from footwear retailer Belle International, which was taken private by CDH and Hillhouse in a $6.8bn deal.

SEE ALSO : ANTA Sports launches eco-friendly A-AWAKE ENERGY series

For the year ending February 28, Topsports recorded revenues of Rmb32.3bn ($4.5bn), up 22 per cent. Adjusted profits for the same period were Rmb2.24bn, up some 20 per cent. In 2018, it held 15.9% in total market share by retail sales, according to Frost & Sullivan.