Stars eye rich pickings as IPOs are resumed

Chinese movie and TV stars holding shares in companies seeking listings are set to reap huge fortunes, with the authorities opening the floodgates for initial public offerings after a freeze of almost a year.

Nine film companies had announced IPO plans by Tuesday and five of them have movie celebrities as their major shareholders.

Movie star and fashion icon Fan Bingbing holds 1.29 million shares, or a 2.15 percent stake, in Talent International Film Co, while actress and director Zhao Wei holds 1.17 million shares, or a 1.95 percent stake, in the company.