Hong Kong Billionaire Richard Li's Insurer FWD Debuts In Long-Awaited IPO
Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li's insurer FWD Group saw its shares close flat in the company's long-awaited Hong Kong stock market debut Monday, marking the culmination of the company's nearly five years of efforts to go public.
FWD ended its first day of trading at HK$38.25 ($4.87), almost flat from the HK$38 per share set for the initial public offering on the main bourse, which raised HK$3.47 billion. Its market capitalization is at about HK$48.8 billion.
'Today's listing is an important milestone for our customers, our partners and our teams across Asia, and highlights Hong Kong's continued strength as a good listing destination,' said Li, chairman of Pacific Century Group and founder of FWD Group, in a prepared statement.
Cornerstone investors in the insurer's IPO include Mubadala Capital, the asset management arm of Abu Dhabi's state-backed Mubadala Investment Co., and T&D United Capital, a subsidiary of Japanese insurance giant T&D Holdings. FWD said it would use the IPO proceeds to enhance its capital position, potentially reduce debt, and support further expansion of its customer and channel reach. Forbes Billionaire Richard Li's Insurer FWD Refiles For Hong Kong IPO By Cat Wang
FWD's listing follows previous applications that lapsed under lukewarm market conditions or were withdrawn due to heightened regulatory scrutiny. The Hong Kong-headquartered insurance company's latest application in May marked its fourth attempt to list on its hometown bourse – including applications in March 2023, September 2022 and February 2022 – and its fifth in total, including the submission of a draft registration statement in June 2021 to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
FWD is majority-owned by Pacific Century Group, Li's investment company, which has interests in finance, technology and property. Through Pacific Century Group and other holding companies, Li owns a 66.45% stake in FWD, worth $4.1 billion, based on the company's latest valuation.
Founded in 2013, FWD serves approximately 30 million people across 10 markets, including Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, Singapore and Thailand, according to the company. It reported a net profit after tax of $24 million in the full year ended December 2024, marking its first full year of profitability and first positive operating cash flow under the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 17's accounting standards. Its total assets over that period reached $53.7 billion, an increase of around 2% from the year prior.
The younger son of Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong's wealthiest person, the junior Li established FWD after announcing he would acquire Dutch banking giant ING Group's insurance and pension units in Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand in late 2012. Since then, FWD has expanded through a series of investments and acquisitions across Asia, while attracting backers such as global reinsurer Swiss Re, Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments).
The company's debut comes as Hong Kong has reclaimed its crown as the world's top listing venue in 2025, driven by surging investor interest in tech stocks and mainland Chinese companies pivoting towards Hong Kong listings to hedge against U.S.-China tensions.
From the beginning of 2025 through June 26, there were 41 listings in Hong Kong raising a total of more than HK$104 billion, according to data from the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing. Among the companies that went public in the city includes gold jeweler Zhou Liu Fu Jewellery, whose shares soared nearly 70% over the first two trading days in late June, catapulting its chairman into the ranks of the world's billionaires; and Thai coconut water maker IFBH, which saw its shares jump 42% in its Hong Kong stock market in June.
In May, Chinese billionaire Robin Zeng's battery manufacturing giant Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) raised HK$35.7 billion ($4.6 billion) by selling 135.6 million shares at HK$263 apiece, the top of their marketed range, according to exchange filings – making its IPO the world's largest of the year so far. MORE FROM FORBES Forbes Founder Of Chinese Camera Maker Insta360 Becomes A Billionaire Upon IPO By Cat Wang Forbes Thailand's Coconut Water Giant IFBH Soars In Hong Kong IPO Debut By Zinnia Lee Forbes Chairman Of Chinese Gold Jeweler Zhou Liu Fu Becomes A Billionaire After Stock Surge By Zinnia Lee
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
If You Bought Only 1 Share of Nvidia at Its IPO, Here's How Many Shares You'd Own Now
Key Points Nvidia's initial public offering (IPO) was on January 22, 1999. The company has executed six stock splits in its 26 years as a public company. Investors who held on to just one share from the IPO would have seen over $85,000 in gains. 10 stocks we like better than Nvidia › Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) has dominated stock market discussion over the past couple years, but it's far from a newcomer. The company was founded on April 5, 1993, and it began trading publicly after its initial public offering (IPO) on January 22, 1999. Had you bought one share of Nvidia stock at its IPO, you would currently have 480 shares, thanks to the six stock splits it has undergone in that time. Stock-Split Date Amount of the Stock Split June 2000 2-for-1 Sept. 2001 2-for-1 April 2006 2-for-1 Sept. 2007 3-for-2 July 2021 4-for-1 June 2024 10-for-1 Data source: Seeking Alpha. How much money would you have made in that time? Although Nvidia has been on the market for a quarter century, it hasn't always been the high-flying stock that investors have seen over the past few years. That said, had you bought one share of Nvidia at its IPO price of $12.00 per share and held on to it all this time, your investment would be worth $85,378 as of this writing. That works out to just under a 40% compound annual growth rate for your position. It's also worth noting that this rate of return doesn't include Nvidia's dividend, which it initiated in Nov. 2012. Anyone who reinvested their dividends would only have boosted their long-term returns. These are mind-boggling results, and Nvidia seems to have plenty left in the tank as it takes center stage in the growth of artificial intelligence. Do the experts think Nvidia is a buy right now? The Motley Fool's expert analyst team, drawing on years of investing experience and deep analysis of thousands of stocks, leverages our proprietary Moneyball AI investing database to uncover top opportunities. They've just revealed their to buy now — did Nvidia make the list? When our Stock Advisor analyst team has a stock recommendation, it can pay to listen. After all, Stock Advisor's total average return is up 1,019% vs. just 178% for the S&P — that is beating the market by 841.12%!* Imagine if you were a Stock Advisor member when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $624,823!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,064,820!* The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 29, 2025 Stefon Walters has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. If You Bought Only 1 Share of Nvidia at Its IPO, Here's How Many Shares You'd Own Now was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Miami Herald
2 hours ago
- Miami Herald
T-Mobile boots customers off yearslong offers without asking
Over the past few months, T-Mobile (TMUS) has been pushing customers to make a major change that has made a few uncomfortable. It started when T-Mobile hiked the prices of its older phone plans (One, Magenta, Simple Choice, and Go5G 55) by $2 or $5 per line in June last year, angering customers. Then, in April, it issued another price increase for some of its older phone plans, hiking monthly prices by $5. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter It appeared that these changes were an effort to push customers off of older phone plans. That suspicion became clearer that same month when T-Mobile introduced its Experience More and Experience Beyond phone plans, which are essentially upgraded versions of its Go5G Plus or Go5G Next plans with five-year price lock guarantees. Related: T-Mobile launches a cheap new service amid customer struggles However, even though the newer plans included upgraded perks, some customers are cautious about switching because taxes and fees are omitted from the plans' pricing. Image source: Bloomberg/Getty Images Now, T-Mobile has made another bold move to push customers onto newer plans. The phone carrier announced that starting Aug. 13, it will boot select customers off of older phone plans and place them onto its Go5G Plus plan (which doesn't include taxes and fees in the price). According to some users on Reddit, who claim to be T-Mobile employees, this change will impact customers on Magenta Plus, MAX, Sprint Max, and ONE Plus plans. Also, customers on segmented plans such as 55+, First Responder, etc., will be moved to similar versions on Go5G Plus. T-Mobile says this will be a "free upgrade," and any free lines, discounts, and perks customers may have on their current plan will also migrate to Go5G Plus. Related: Verizon hopes a new tactic will fix fleeing customer problem "Beginning with your next bill cycle after August 13, we're upgrading your plan to Go5G Plus, which includes all the benefits you already have and more at no extra cost-like better deals on phone upgrades," said T-Mobile on its website. "You'll also get more high-speed data, like 50GB of hotspot data and 15GB of high-speed data in Canada and Mexico." Customers with price locks on their current plans won't be migrated to Go5G Plus; only those on older phone plans who were impacted by recent price increases will be moved. The change from T-Mobile comes after it officially retired its Go5G plans in June. This means that new customers were revoked the ability to sign up for those plans, while older customers could remain on them. T-Mobile's latest move also comes during a time when it is struggling to retain loyal customers. In its second-quarter earnings report for 2025, T-Mobile revealed that while it attracted 830,000 new postpaid phone customers, its postpaid phone churn (the number of customers who cut their phone service) increased by 10 basis points year-over-year. More Telecom News: Verizon's push to make switching harder for customers hits a snagT-Mobile announces generous offer for conflicted customersAmazon pulls the plug on a free service for customers During an earnings call on July 23, T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert said the company is navigating a "highly competitive environment" where competitors are unveiling "unprecedented device promotions." T-Mobile is even facing increased competition from cable companies that offer consumers phone services at discounted rates. A recent report from MoffettNathanson found that Comcast, Spectrum and Altice USA gained 886,000 new phone customers during the first quarter of 2025, up from the 804,000 they added during the same quarter in 2024. During the third quarter, T-Mobile anticipates churn will either decrease year-over-year, remain flat, or slightly increase. Related: Comcast takes drastic action as customers rapidly cut service The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Trip.com Group (NASDAQ:TCOM) Is Doing The Right Things To Multiply Its Share Price
If you're not sure where to start when looking for the next multi-bagger, there are a few key trends you should keep an eye out for. Typically, we'll want to notice a trend of growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and alongside that, an expanding base of capital employed. Basically this means that a company has profitable initiatives that it can continue to reinvest in, which is a trait of a compounding machine. So on that note, Group (NASDAQ:TCOM) looks quite promising in regards to its trends of return on capital. This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality. Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It? For those who don't know, ROCE is a measure of a company's yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Group: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) 0.084 = CN¥14b ÷ (CN¥248b - CN¥77b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2025). So, Group has an ROCE of 8.4%. On its own, that's a low figure but it's around the 10% average generated by the Hospitality industry. Check out our latest analysis for Group In the above chart we have measured Group's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like, you can check out the forecasts from the analysts covering Group for free. The Trend Of ROCE While in absolute terms it isn't a high ROCE, it's promising to see that it has been moving in the right direction. The numbers show that in the last five years, the returns generated on capital employed have grown considerably to 8.4%. Basically the business is earning more per dollar of capital invested and in addition to that, 33% more capital is being employed now too. So we're very much inspired by what we're seeing at Group thanks to its ability to profitably reinvest capital. The Bottom Line To sum it up, Group has proven it can reinvest in the business and generate higher returns on that capital employed, which is terrific. Since the stock has returned a staggering 119% to shareholders over the last five years, it looks like investors are recognizing these changes. With that being said, we still think the promising fundamentals mean the company deserves some further due diligence. While Group looks impressive, no company is worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic for TCOM helps visualize whether it is currently trading for a fair price. While Group may not currently earn the highest returns, we've compiled a list of companies that currently earn more than 25% return on equity. Check out this free list here. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
