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Forbes
07-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Hong Kong Billionaire Richard Li's Insurer FWD Debuts In Long-Awaited IPO
Richard Li (left) attends the IPO ceremony of his FWD Group at Exchange Square in Central, Hong Kong. Shanshan Kao/Forbes Asia 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Kong IPO By Cat Wang FWD's listing follows previous applications that lapsed under lukewarm market conditions or were withdrawn due to heightened regulatory scrutiny.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
Reuters
19-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Insurer FWD Group could launch $500 million Hong Kong IPO next week, sources say
SYDNEY, June 19 (Reuters) - Insurer FWD Group plans to launch its Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) to raise about $500 million as early as next week, said two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. FWD declined to comment on the deal and the sources could not be named as they were discussing confidential information. The insurance group, controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li, was given approval by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to proceed with the listing, according to the exchange's website. The deal would be FWD's third attempt to go public after it initially aimed for a New York IPO in 2021 to raise $2 to $3 billion. The insurance group shelved the plan due to lengthy delays in obtaining U.S. regulatory approval. FWD faced questions from the U.S. regulators on its mainland China ties, Reuters reported citing sources, and had been treated by authorities as a Chinese business rather than a Hong Kong entity. It then targetted a Hong Kong IPO in 2022 but put those plans on hold due to volatile global financial markets at the time. Li, the son of Hong Kong's richest person Li Ka-shing, founded FWD in 2013 and controls it via investment arm Pacific Century Group, which has interests in the technology, media, telecoms and property as well as financial sectors. FWD operates in ten markets across Asia, according to its website. It counts Apollo, Swiss RE and GIC, among others as shareholders, according to its regulatory filings.
South China Morning Post
26-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Panama ports deal: eyebrows raised over Hong Kong's Richard Li in Beijing, observers say
The appearance of the younger son of Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing at a high-profile summit in Beijing on the weekend caused a stir in business circles given how the central government had signalled its displeasure over the sale of Panama Canal ports controlled by his family's conglomerate, observers have said. Advertisement Richard Li Tzar-kai was among 93 people who appeared in a group photo with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the China Development Forum on Sunday in Beijing. His father and his elder brother, Victor Li Tzar-kuoi, were absent. Standing in the last row, the younger brother was sporting his usual round, black-framed glasses. He attended in his capacity as founder of Pacific Century Group, a Hong Kong-based private investment conglomerate with interests in technology, media, financial services, infrastructure and property. Lau Siu-kai, a consultant to the semi-official Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies think tank, said on Tuesday that Beijing recognised that the brothers had been involved in separate business ventures for a long time. Advertisement 'Richard Li is not involved in the sale of piers by Hutchison and he is a tycoon in his own right,' Lau said. 'Besides, Beijing has not issued any official statement against Hutchison or Li Ka-shing.'
Bloomberg
23-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Li Ka-shing's Son Invited to China Forum Amid Panama Port Deal
Richard Li, a son of Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, is invited to a high-profile forum in Beijing, in the midst of the escalating pressure concerning the sale of CK Hutchison's Panama port operations. Richard Li is invited as a founder of Pacific Century Group to the China Development Forum organized by the Development Research Center of the State Council, according to a list of representatives. The forum is held from Sunday to Monday, with the country's top leaders including Premier Li Qiang in attendance.
South China Morning Post
23-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Younger son of Hong Kong's Li Ka-shing invited to Beijing's key global business forum
Richard Li Tzar-kai, the younger son of Hong Kong's richest tycoon Li Ka-shing , has been invited to the high-profile China Development Forum that started on Sunday in Beijing, according to the list of attendees seen by the Post. Advertisement The younger Li would be attending as a business representative in his capacity as founder of Pacific Century Group, a Hong Kong-based private investment conglomerate with interests in technology, media, financial services, infrastructure and property. It is unclear whether he will participate in any panel discussion at the forum, which has brought together more than 80 top executives of global multinationals to Beijing for exchanges with Chinese officials. The two-day annual forum is a chance for foreign business leaders and China's state officials to discuss the country's growth targets and associated action announced at the 'two sessions' earlier this month. Also earlier this month, CK Hutchison Holdings, the port and infrastructure arm of Li Ka-shing's business empire, announced its decision to sell off global ports – including those in Panama – to a US consortium led by investment firm BlackRock in a US$23 billion transaction. Advertisement This came after US President Donald Trump alleged that China had the vital Panama Canal under its control and vowed to restore American dominance there.
