China’s Ant Group has cleared the final hurdle for its $30bn initial public offering, after receiving approval from Hong Kong’s bourse ahead of what is set to be the world’s biggest-ever stock market debut.
The city’s exchange gave the deal its public stamp of approval on Wednesday, setting off a whirlwind of preparations for the hotly anticipated dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai. The deal is expected to top the record $25.6bn IPO in 2019 of Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company.
Ant, the online payments group owned by billionaire Jack Ma, is valued at $318bn by some analysts. Bankers working on the IPO are anxious to price and list the shares ahead of the US presidential election on November 3, which is seen as a potential source of market volatility that could disrupt proceedings.