China Mobile to raise $7.64 billion in Shanghai IPO

• The company plans to offer 845.70 million shares for 57.58 yuan ($9.03) per share

• The profits will be used in premium 5G networks, cloud infrastructure, and intelligent ecosystems

China Mobile Ltd. plans to raise 56 billion yuan ($7.64 billion) through a Shanghai offering, making it one of the biggest public offerings this year.

China Mobile's stock offering comes after it, as well as domestic competitors China Telecom Corp. and China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd., lost their appeals to be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.

China Telecom raised more than $7 billion through a Shanghai IPO in August of this year.

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The company plans to offer 845.70 million shares at 57.58 yuan ($9.03) per share, the mobile operator said on Tuesday. China Mobile has an overallotment option to sell an additional 126.86 million shares, which if exercised, would bring the total amount of the offer to approximately $8.8 billion.

The world's largest mobile network operator by total subscribers stated that the profits of the selling will be utilized to create initiatives such as premium 5G networks, cloud infrastructure, and intelligent ecosystems.

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Chinese authorities have sought to make it easier for local investors to invest in more of China's corporate champions and fast-growing technological firms, WSJ stated. 

US blacklists Chinese entities

Last month Washington imposed trade restrictions on 34 Chinese entities and research institutes, citing human rights violations and national security reasons. 

Read more: SEC finalizes rule to delist Chinese firms for not complying audit disclosure requirements

The move followed Washington adding Chinese AI and facial recognition firm, SenseTime, along with 25 other entities, into the restriction list, citing human rights violations. 

The Biden administration also slapped an investment restriction on SenseTime, saying the business of developing face recognition technology that is being used in human rights violations against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang province, causing the company to postpone its $767 million Hong Kong IPO.

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(6.37 Chinese Yuan = 1USD)

Inputs from WSJ 

Picture Credits: Bloomberg