China Pacific Insurance, the country’s third-largest insurer, has raised $3.1bn in a Hong Kong IPO that paves the way for US buy-out group Carlyle to eventually sell down its stake and book a nearly five-fold profit on its original investment. In the world’s seventh-largest IPO this year, China Pacific sold 861.3m shares, or a 10.2% stake, at HK$28 ($3.60) per share. Carlyle and US-based Prudential Financial bought 25% of China Pacific’s life insurance arm for about $410m in 2005. In 2007 Carlyle increased its investment and converted it into a 17% stake in the parent, China Pacific Group, shortly before the insurer’s Shanghai listing.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Friday, December 18th, 2009 at 5:11 and is featured in The 6am Cut London (18 Dec 2009) . Tagged with carlyle, China Pacific Insurance, prudential financial. Edit this entry.