Agrochemical giant Syngenta’s planned $10 billion (RMB 64.5 billion) initial public offering in China has been postponed due to incomplete financial information, according to an Oct. 11 news release from the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
The SSE suspended Syngenta Group’s offering in China, according to a Swiss news report.
In 2017, state-owned China National Chemical Corp. acquired Basel-based Swiss agri-technology firm Syngenta Group for $44 billion. ChemChina’s application to list on the SSE’s Science and Technology Board was approved in early July and was once widely expected to be the world’s largest IPO this year.
On Sept. 30, the SSE’s STB suspended 57 applications for listing, citing a lack of up-to-date financial information as the reason. According to the stock exchange, applicants must submit additional information when financial information recorded in application materials is out of date.
Sources told Reuters that ChemChina is also considering a secondary listing for Syngenta, which could come less than a year after its Shanghai debut. Zurich and London, as well as New York, are among the listing options currently under review.
According to the report, airline meal supplier Gategroup and Syngenta were acquired by Chinese companies in 2016 and 2017, respectively. This alerted the Swiss authorities, and the Swiss government has set new rules as a result. In the future, foreign state-owned funds or funds linked to the state will be subject to stricter regulation when acquiring Swiss companies. The Swiss government has developed a broad framework for a foreign investment regulatory system. Concerned about the global wave of corporate takeovers, Swiss parliamentarians passed a motion in March 2020 aimed at protecting the Swiss economy.
Recent Comments