紐約超越香港成爲大陸大型IPO首選地

The initial public offering of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., slated for September, could mark 2014 as the most successful ever for Chinese listings on U.S. exchanges.

阿里巴巴集團(Alibaba Group)將於9月份進行首次公開募股(IPO)，這可能令2014年成爲中國公司赴海外上市最成功的一年。

High valuations for tech stocks offered by U.S. investors have prompted a flurry of new Chinese listings on Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange. This has helped the U.S. outpace Hong Kong for cross-border IPOs for the first time in the past five years, according to data compiled by law firm Baker & McKenzie.

美國投資者對科技類股的高估值促使大量中國公司赴納斯達克(Nasdaq)和紐約證交所(New York Stock Exchange)上市。據貝克・麥堅時國際律師事務所(Baker & McKenzie, )編制的數據，過去五年，得益於這種趨勢，美國已經首次超越香港成爲大陸公司最熱門的境外上市地。

'There are better valuations for tech companies and software and app developers in the U.S. The [price-to-earnings] ratio is a lot more generous,' said Elsa Chan, a leading IPO partner with Baker & McKenzie in Hong Kong.

貝克・麥堅時國際律師事務所駐香港的主要IPO合夥人陳世芝(Elsa Chan)稱，美國市場對科技公司、軟件公司和應用軟件開發商的估值更高，認可的市盈率也更高。

A deeper understanding of tech stocks among U.S. funds and retail shareholders with decades of experience investing in the sector has injected confidence into earnings growth to support high initial valuations. A thirst for exposure to one of the world's fastest growing major economies doesn't hurt either.

美國基金和散戶投資者對科技類股有更深刻的理解，他們在該領域的投資有幾十年的經驗，因此對科技公司的利潤增長也更有信心，這爲高估值提供了支撐。另外，美國投資者渴望分享全球增長最快的大型經濟體的經濟成果的心態也推動了大陸科技公司赴美上市的熱潮。

Last year Hong Kong exchanges had $15 billion of listings for offshore companies, driven by $14.5 billion of business from China. The U.S. fared poorly by comparison, drawing in only $5 billion of offshore IPOs and a paltry $900 million in Chinese business.

去年，在香港交易所進行的境外公司上市交易達150億美元，其中中國大陸公司爲145億美元。相比之下，美國市場的表現遜色，只吸引到50億美元的離岸IPO交易，而中資公司在美國的IPO交易只有區區9億美元。

Already the trend has reversed in the first half of 2014. U.S. exchanges had $8 billion of cross-border IPOs, nearly tripling the amount from the same point last year. Of that, IPOs by Chinese companies on U.S. exchanges drew in $3.5 billion for the first half of the year. This compares with just $6 billion for Hong Kong exchanges so far in 2014, all of which came from China.

這一趨勢在2014年上半年出現逆轉。在美國交易所進行的跨境IPO交易達80億美元，是上年同期的近三倍。其中，中資公司今年上半年在美國交易所進行了35億美元的IPO。相比之下，香港交易所在2014年截至目前只吸引到60億美元的境外公司IPO，而且全部爲中資公司。

In 2014, companies such as Inc., an online retailer and rival, and Australian-owned Chinese job-seeking website Zhaopin Ltd., have listed on U.S. exchanges. Alibaba, China's biggest internet company, is seeking to raise up to $20 billion through a float on NYSE, equivalent to the value of all cross-border IPOs on U.S. exchanges over the past three-and-a-half years.

2014年，網上零售商京東( Inc.)與澳大利亞企業控股的中國求職網站智聯招聘(Zhaopin Ltd.)等公司都已在美國交易所上市。作爲中國最大互聯網公司的阿里巴巴目前正尋求通過在紐約證交所上市籌資至多200億美元，這將相當於過去三年半在美國交易所進行的所有跨境IPO交易的總額。

Hong Kong's main exchange and smaller GEM exchange traditionally have bested U.S. bourses for offshore business, as new Chinese companies from state-owned enterprises to startups listed in the former British colony. The trend has continued with companies like commercial lender Harbin Bank Co Ltd., which raised $1.13 billion, and Tianhe Chemicals Group Ltd., which raised $654 million, through listings so far this year.

隨着從中國國企到初創公司的企業紛紛在香港新上市，香港交易所主板和創業板吸引了比美國各交易所更多的離岸業務。今年以來，哈爾濱銀行股份有限公司(Harbin Bank Co Ltd, 簡稱：哈爾濱銀行)和天合化工集團有限公司(Tianhe Chemicals Group Ltd., 簡稱：天合化工)等公司在香港上市，延續了這一趨勢。哈爾濱銀行通過香港上市募資11.3億美元，天合化工通過香港上市募資6.54億美元。

'Hong Kong has done pretty well in terms of the number of companies listing,' said Ms Chan. 'But take a closer look, though, and it seems bigger companies have chosen the U.S.'

陳世芝說，在準備上市的公司數量方面，香港做的很不錯，但經過更仔細的觀察，就會發現大企業似乎選擇了美國。

In terms of IPO numbers overall, Hong Kong still came out on top, with 35 companies choosing to float there compared with 27 for U.S. exchanges.

在總體IPO數量方面，香港仍居首位。總計有35家企業選擇在香港上市，27家選擇在美國上市。

Updated listing rules in Hong Kong have added credibility to the exchange, but may also be one reason New York has gained an edge. Hong Kong's main exchange recently changed its rules to provide more vigorous vetting of company prospectuses, said Ms. Chan.

與時俱進的上市規則給香港交易所增添了公信力，但這可能也是紐約市場擁有某種優勢的一個原因。陳世芝說，最近香港交易所主板調整了規定，將對企業招股說明書提供更嚴格的審查。

In the case of Alibaba, the Hong Kong exchange's owner, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. and regulator, the Securities and Futures Commission, partly have themselves to blame. The firm initially considered listing on the exchange but failed to reach agreement on a novel structure that would have allowed founding partners to continue nominating board members even after the company was listed.

在阿里巴巴的個案中，香港交易所的擁有方香港交易及結算所有限公司(Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd.(Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. , 簡稱：香港交易所)以及監管機構香港證券及期貨事務監察委員會(Securities and Futures Commission, 簡稱：香港證監會)也難辭其咎。阿里巴巴起初考慮在香港交易所上市，但未能在公司結構上達成協議。按照阿里巴巴的架構，公司的開創合夥人仍可以在公司上市之後任命董事會成員。

'The U.S. allowed for a more innovative structure,' Ms. Chan said.

陳世芝說，美國容許更具創新性的架構。

Still, the overall picture is rosy for most exchanges, with a surge in cross-border IPOs as firms look to tap better valuations for their companies in markets around the world. Capital raised through cross-border IPOs in the first half of the year jumped 151% in value compared with the same time last year, with 102 listings raising $25.7 billion, according to Baker & McKenzie.

不過多數交易所的總體情況是好的，隨着企業爲自身在全球市場尋找更好的價值，跨境IPO數量激增。據貝克・麥堅時國際律師事務所的資料顯示，與上年同期相比較，今年上半年通過跨境IPO籌集到的資本價值增長了151%，102筆上市交易籌集到了257億美元。

The Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, a new system that will allow cross-border trading between the two exchanges and may launch later this year, also should support this trend, said Ms. Chan.

陳世芝表示，滬港通這一新機制的誕生也將助長這一趨勢，該機制允許兩地投資者買賣對方交易所上市的股票，有可能會在今年晚些時候推出。