------ Li Ka-shing, Vorsitzender von Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited (Cheung Kong Holdings) und Vorsitzender der Hutchison Whampoa, während eine Taste Conf gesehen
--File-- Li Ka-shing, Chairman of Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited (Cheung Kong Holdings) and Chairman of Hutchison Whampoa, is seen during a press conference in Hong Kong, China, August 13, 2009. Li Ka-shing, Hong Kongs richest man, is preparing what may be the first yuan-denominated initial public offering in the city in the first half of 2011, said two people with knowledge of the matter. Li, 82, hired Citic Securities International Co. to lead the sale of more than 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) of shares in a real estate investment trust backed by the Oriental Plaza development in Beijing, said one of the people, who declined to be identified because the information is private. HSBC Holdings Plc will help arrange the offering, the people said. Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Charles Li has proposed allowing yuan-denominated share sales in the city. Chinese-currency deposits at Hong Kong banks swelled to a record 217.1 billion yuan in October, according to Hong Kong Monetary Authority data. If reaction to the IPO is good, it may very well create a trend for other Hong Kong developers to follow, said Lee Wee Liat, a Hong Kong-based analyst at Samsung Securities Ltd. Companies have sold more than 62 billion yuan of bonds denominated in the Chinese currency in Hong Kong since 2007, according to a Dec. 20 Bank of China (Hong Kong) Ltd. statement. Winnie Cheong, a Hong Kong-based spokeswoman for Lis Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd., did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment. Joyce Ho, a spokeswoman at Citic Securities International in Hong Kong, said the firm does not comment on market rumors. Maggie Cheung, an HSBC spokeswoman in the city, declined to comment. Chinese-language newspaper Hong Kong Economic Times reported Lis plan earlier Wednesday (December 22, 2010).
