Zijin Gold delays US$3.2 billion IPO as typhoon pummels Hong Kong

Zijin Gold International delayed its US$3.2 billion listing after Super Typhoon Ragasa slammed Hong Kong, bringing the city to a standstill and disrupting the company’s ability to take orders for its initial public offering (IPO).

The company pushed back the listing, set to be the world’s second largest this year, by a day to Sep 30, it said on Wednesday (Sep 24), citing bad weather.

The delay comes because of Hong Kong exchange rules that require companies to extend an IPO’s subscription period by a day if there’s a storm warning No 8 or above between 9 am and noon of the last day for retail investors to place bids. That results in subsequent steps for the deal, including the listing, being delayed by an equivalent period of time.

The super typhoon also delayed the listing of gold-case watchmaker Shenzhen Hipine Precision Technology, whose IPO has a similar timeline to Zijin Gold’s. If the extreme weather persists to Thursday morning, automobile-software maker Pateo Connect Technology (Shanghai)’s IPO would also be at risk of being pushed back. BLOOMBERG