Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>PCAOB officials concluded their Hong Kong visit last month and PCAOB is due to announce its annual judgment on whether it had adequate access to US listed China companies.</li>
<li>The Hong Kong visit was on the back of the 26th Aug 2022 announcement by PCAOB and CSRC that they had entered into an agreement with US authorities for access.</li>
<li>In this note, we'll talk about the latest developments, possible outcomes and implications.</li>
</ul>


PCAOB officials concluded their Hong Kong visit last month and PCAOB is due to announce its annual judgment on whether it had adequate access to US listed China companies.
The Hong Kong visit was on the back of the 26th Aug 2022 announcement by PCAOB and CSRC that they had entered into an agreement with US authorities for access.
In this note, we'll talk about the latest developments, possible outcomes and implications.


China ADRs Delisting - Friday Could Be Judgment Day for over US$800bn Mcap of Stocks

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

David Blennerhassett

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Douyu International Holdings / Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>In a particularly altruistic move, live-streaming game platform play <strong><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/douyu-international-hold-adr" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28045:1" rel="noopener">Douyu International Holdings (DOYU US)</a>  </strong><a href="https://ir.douyu.com/2024-07-03-DouYu-International-Holdings-Limited-Announces-Special-Cash-Dividend" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> a special cash dividend of US$9.76/share, vs. a last price of US$12.59.</li>
<li>The cash outlay is roughly US$308mn, and Douyu had cash (as at 1Q24) of <a href="https://ir.douyu.com/2024-06-05-DouYu-International-Holdings-Limited-Reports-First-Quarter-2024-Unaudited-Financial-Results" target="_blank" rel="noopener">US$936.6mn</a>. And no debt.  Founder/chairman/CEO Shaojie Chen (17.2% shareholder) will pocket a tidy ~US$53mn.</li>
<li>An outlier; or should we expect more of the same for other cash-rich US-listed China plays?</li>
</ul>


In a particularly altruistic move, live-streaming game platform play Douyu International Holdings (DOYU US)  announced a special cash dividend of US$9.76/share, vs. a last price of US$12.59.
The cash outlay is roughly US$308mn, and Douyu had cash (as at 1Q24) of US$936.6mn. And no debt.  Founder/chairman/CEO Shaojie Chen (17.2% shareholder) will pocket a tidy ~US$53mn.
An outlier; or should we expect more of the same for other cash-rich US-listed China plays?


Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>Seeing as though it is Chinese New Year week, I thought it might be appropriate to conduct a brief analysis of US-listed China plays.</li>
<li>According to a recent US-China Economic and Security Review Commission report, 265 Chinese companies were listed on the NYSE, Nasdaq and NYSE American exchanges in January 2024 worth US$848bn. </li>
<li>That's down from 252 companies worth US$1.03tn a year ago, a 17.5% decline. 91% of the total market capitalization of Chinese firms listed on U.S. exchanges use VIEs.</li>
</ul>


Seeing as though it is Chinese New Year week, I thought it might be appropriate to conduct a brief analysis of US-listed China plays.
According to a recent US-China Economic and Security Review Commission report, 265 Chinese companies were listed on the NYSE, Nasdaq and NYSE American exchanges in January 2024 worth US$848bn. 
That's down from 252 companies worth US$1.03tn a year ago, a 17.5% decline. 91% of the total market capitalization of Chinese firms listed on U.S. exchanges use VIEs.


Equity Research Analyst - Long-Short

Raj S, CA, CFA

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Newborn is a rare HK listed name entirely focused on overseas, monetising social networking apps across MENA and Southeast Asia, giving investors concentrated exposure to the China-to-overseas growth theme.</li>
<li>Stock trades at low-teens PE while revenues and profits grow above twenty-five percent CAGR, leaving a big valuation disconnect and plenty of room for re-rating compared to global peers.</li>
<li>The product matrix strategy means older apps provide cash, newer apps drive rapid scale, while a pipeline of apps ensures continuous replacement growth and resilience across user segments and geographies.</li>
</ul>


Newborn is a rare HK listed name entirely focused on overseas, monetising social networking apps across MENA and Southeast Asia, giving investors concentrated exposure to the China-to-overseas growth theme.
Stock trades at low-teens PE while revenues and profits grow above twenty-five percent CAGR, leaving a big valuation disconnect and plenty of room for re-rating compared to global peers.
The product matrix strategy means older apps provide cash, newer apps drive rapid scale, while a pipeline of apps ensures continuous replacement growth and resilience across user segments and geographies.


2025 High Conviction: Newborn Town (9911.HK) – Deep Value - China’s Global Social Apps Expansion

APAC IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Ethan Aw

APAC IPOs & Placements

Equity Capital Markets

Webtoon Entertainment / Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/webtoon-entertainment-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:43652:1" rel="noopener">Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN US)</a> raised around US$315m in its US IPO, after pricing the deal at the top of the range at US$21/share.</li>
<li>Webtoon Entertainment is a global storytelling platform where a community of creators and users discover, create and share new content.</li>
<li>In our previous notes, we talked about the company’s historical performance, undertook a peer comparison and shared our thoughts on valuation. In this note, we talk about the trading dynamics.</li>
</ul>



Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN US) raised around US$315m in its US IPO, after pricing the deal at the top of the range at US$21/share.
Webtoon Entertainment is a global storytelling platform where a community of creators and users discover, create and share new content.
In our previous notes, we talked about the company’s historical performance, undertook a peer comparison and shared our thoughts on valuation. In this note, we talk about the trading dynamics.


Webtoon Entertainment IPO Trading - Not Cheap Given the Lack of Growth

United States

HUYA Inc. operates as a game live streaming platform. The Company offers interactive video broadcast services including e-sports, music, reality show, entertainment genres, talent shows, and anime and outdoor activities. HUYA serves customers in China.

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HUYA (HUYA US)

China ADRs Delisting - Friday Could Be Judgment Day for over US$800bn Mcap of Stocks

PCAOB officials concluded their Hong Kong visit last month and PCAOB is due to announce its annual judgment on whether it had adequate access to US...

Sumeet Singh

Screening For The Next Douyu (DOYU US)

In an altruistic move, Douyu announced a special dividend of US$9.76/share, vs. a last price of US$12.59. An outlier; or should we expect more of...

David Blennerhassett

Musings On US-Listed China Plays

Investors in Chinese companies may be willing to support activities that are contrary to US national interests, including technology used for...

David Blennerhassett

Webtoon Entertainment IPO Trading - Not Cheap Given the Lack of Growth

Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN US) raised around US$315m in its US IPO, after pricing the deal at the top of the range at US$21/share.

Ethan Aw

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

China ADRs Delisting - Friday Could Be Judgment Day for over US$800bn Mcap of Stocks

PCAOB officials concluded their Hong Kong visit last month and PCAOB is due to announce its annual judgment on whether it had adequate access to US...

Sumeet Singh

Screening For The Next Douyu (DOYU US)

In an altruistic move, Douyu announced a special dividend of US$9.76/share, vs. a last price of US$12.59. An outlier; or should we expect more of...

David Blennerhassett

Musings On US-Listed China Plays

Investors in Chinese companies may be willing to support activities that are contrary to US national interests, including technology used for...

David Blennerhassett

2025 High Conviction: Newborn Town (9911.HK) – Deep Value - China’s Global Social Apps Expansion

Newborn Town offers opportunity to capitalize on China-to-overseas growth with a diverse portfolio of social networking apps, at deep value on PEG...

Raj S, CA, CFA

Webtoon Entertainment IPO Trading - Not Cheap Given the Lack of Growth

Webtoon Entertainment (WBTN US) raised around US$315m in its US IPO, after pricing the deal at the top of the range at US$21/share.

Ethan Aw