Following earlier rumors of an impending IPO, Chinese unicorn, Meituan-Dianping has recently completed a whole week of pre-A1 marketing, as it prepares for the submission of its prospectus to the Hong Kong Exchange on the 22nd of June, according to local media reports citing people familiar with the matter.
A1 stands for listing application Form A1 with the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (HKEX), IPO-seeking companies typically hold marketing events to communicate with potential investors and gauge their interests prior to the submission of Form A1.
And the roadshow was received with bullish sentiments among investors, people familiar with the matter said.
Some of the notable investors that Meituan-Dianping has approached include Blackrock and Fidelity. Non-traditional investors such as U.S tech giants, Apple and Amazon were also the other potential backers of the company.
The Meituan-Dianping group is the world’s largest lifestyle ecommerce platform. It claims 280 million yearly active users and 600 million registered accounts, and offers a range of on-demand services in 2,800 Chinese cities.
According to previous media reports, Meituan has tapped Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, and China Renaissance as underwriters. While Morgan Stanley, which might also involve in Didi’s upcoming IPO, was warned by Meituan and was prohibited from attending the pre-A1 marketing.
Meituan’s discord with Morgan Stanley isn’t an isolated case.
Jack Ma’s Ant Financial, the world’s largest fintech unicorn, was also said to be planning its public offering later this year and the company has strictly forbidden its backers from investing into its competitors, including the likes of Tencent, JD, as well as, Meituan.
