Japan: Japan Post Insurance to go public in Nov
Source: Asia Insurance Review | Oct 2015
State-owned Japan Post Holdings has obtained approval from the Tokyo Stock Exchange to go public in November, together with its insurance and banking units.
Japan Post Insurance, which is the country’s largest insurer, will seek US$1.2 billion from the offering, while the holding company aims to raise $5.5 billion, and the banking unit $4.8 billion, reported Bloomberg. The listing is scheduled on 4 November.
The government is seeking to raise about JPY1.4 trillion (US$11.6 billion) from the initial public offer, according to calculations based on a filing posted to the Ministry of Finance. The JPY1.4 trillion IPO will be the biggest in Japan since NTT Docomo raised JPY2.1 trillion in an IPO in 1998, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Proceeds will be used to raise funds for reconstruction following the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami in the northeast of the country.
The IPO, the culmination of a privatisation process driven by then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi a decade ago, comes at a volatile time for Japan’s stock market, which has been battered by the global turmoil stemming from China.
Japan Post Insurance’s tentative offer price is JPY2,150. The holding company’s indicative IPO price is JPY1,350 a share and Japan Post Bank’s is JPY1,400. Final prices for the insurer and bank will be decided on 19 October and for the parent company on 26 October.