KE Holdings makes ready for listing in HK

Chinese housing services provider KE Holdings Inc announced it will be listed by way of introduction on the main board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. Its joint sponsors are Goldman Sachs and China International Capital Corporation, according to the company's exchange filing on Thursday.

The company said it has applied for a listing of its Class A ordinary shares on the main board, and dealings in the Class A ordinary shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange are expected to commence next Wednesday under the stock code "2423" and will be conducted in Hong Kong dollars.

Online news outlet ThePaper said KE Holdings' flotation in Hong Kong has adopted the method of "dual-primary listing + introduction listing", which does not involve new share financing or new offerings. The approach is suitable for enterprises with abundant cash flow and no urgent financing needs.

A company opts for a dual-primary listing where it is subject to both full requirements in Hong Kong and those of another market. Both capital markets are the main listing places, so even if the company is delisted on one exchange, it will not affect the company's status on the other.

KE Holdings started to trade on the New York Stock Exchange on Aug 13, 2020.

Its statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange revealed the company's gross transaction value increased from 3,499.1 billion yuan ($529.41 billion) in 2020 to 3,853.5 billion yuan in 2021, representing a year-on-year growth rate of 10.1 percent. And its net revenues increased by 14.6 percent from 70.5 billion yuan in 2020 to 80.8 billion yuan in 2021.

KE Holdings registered a net loss of 2,180 million yuan in 2019, but turned a profit in 2020, recording a net income of 2,778 million yuan. In 2021, it recorded a net loss of 525 million yuan.