IQiyi Inc is seeking to raise $300 million for a listing in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region this year, potentially becoming the latest US-listed Chinese firm to tap investors closer to home.
The Netflix-style streaming service, owned by Baidu Inc, has begun discussions with global banks about a second listing in the city, people familiar with the matter said, asking to remain anonymous discussing a private deal. IQiyi’s US stock rose as much as 6 percent but pared gains to close little changed in New York.
IQiyi, which hosts a plethora of content from Chinese period dramas to blockbuster Hollywood films, joins the likes of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd in exploring a second listing in Hong Kong. The company vies with Tencent Holdings Ltd and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd to rank among the biggest video-streaming platforms in China, with an estimated 400 million-plus monthly active users.
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Negotiations around a listing are fluid and iQiyi may still reconsider. A company spokesperson didn’t provide a comment when reached by Bloomberg News.
If it goes ahead, the firm will join a wave of listings that’ve fueled Hong Kong’s revival this year. They helped the city reclaim its standing as the world’s second-largest market for share sales for the first time since 2012.