Chinese tech giant Baidu to raise $3.1 billion in Hong Kong listing

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The Baidu Inc. logo is displayed on the company’s headquarters on July 3, 2019 in Beijing, China.
Wan Xiaojun | Visual China Group via Getty Images

GUANGZHOU, China — Chinese search giant Baidu will raise nearly $3.1 billion in its upcoming Hong Kong secondary listing, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC.

Baidu has priced its shares at 252 Hong Kong dollars ($32.45), the person said.

The technology giant previously announced plans to issue 95 million Class A ordinary shares. At 252 Hong Kong dollars per share, Baidu will raise around 23.94 billion Hong Kong dollars ($3.08 billion).

In a regulatory filing last week, Baidu said it would not price its shares at more than 295 Hong Kong dollars.

Shares will start trading in Hong Kong on March 23, the source said.

Baidu declined to comment on the pricing and timeline of the deal.

One American depositary share is worth 8 Class A ordinary shares being issued in Hong Kong, which means the 252 Hong Kong dollar pricing is a roughly 2.7% discount to the closing price of Baidu’s U.S.-listed shares on Tuesday.

Baidu joins a long list of U.S.-listed Chinese tech companies that have done secondary offerings in Hong Kong including AlibabaJD.com and NetEase. CNBC reported in January that Chinese video streaming company Bilibili has also filed for a Hong Kong secondary listing.