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ING Group turns to tech firms set to list. Change of strategy in line with market
ING Beijing Investment will see most of its technology portfolio spun off in separate listings over the next 12 months.
However, the company only plans to acquire stakes in one or two additional technology firms this year.
Dick Kwan Bo-ren, managing director of Baring Capital (China) Management, a member of the ING Group and which acts as the investment manager for the listed company, said the group's investment strategy had shifted because of the rapidly changing stock market.
He said in the past the company had usually invested in Chinese market leaders, which could carry out initial public offerings (IPOs) within three to five years.
Now, the company tended to invest in technology firms which could carry out an IPO within six to 12 months, he said.
He said potential new investments were likely to include technology firms which converged telecommunications with Internet.
Technology firms with profitable operations would be more popular on the stock market in the near future, he said.
He said the company' investment portfolio was valued at about $500 million, of which 65 per cent was technology-related.
Forty per cent of the portfolio by value would be ready for an IPO sometime in the future, he added.
The largest weighting in the portfolio was its equity stake in Skyworth Digital Holdings (0751), a consumer electronics producer with information technology activities which was listed in April.
Mr Kwan said the stake accounted for 39 per vent of the total value of the portfolio and represented an estimated $113 million unrealised gain.
Other investments included Internet portal operator Skynet, ChinaGo.com, a multi-domain e-mail service based on the mainland, nationwide paging service provider Beijing APFS Communications Technology and mainland-based ceramics business Companion China.
Mr Kwan said Skynet's portals Hkcyber and Hkstock were expected to be listed this year.
Beijing APFS, he satellite paging network which is negotiating with a Nasdaq-listed company to introduce a global positioning network, is expected to be listed on the Nasdaq by the fourth quarter of this year.
Mr Kwan said Companion China had actively sought a back-door listing in Hong Kong. The takeover negotiations were in the final stages and would be concluded by the third quarter.
ING Beijing invested in Companion China through a US$12 million (HK$93.6 million) convertible bond which would mature later this month.