据熟悉情况的消息人士周二称，由中资财团所有的手机游戏公司Playtika 已聘请投行为其美国首次公开发行(IPO)做准备。此次IPO可能筹资10亿美元左右。
Playtika的上市准备表明，一些中资公司继续寻求在美国上市，尽管美国政界人士和投资者对这些公司的审计标准实施更严格的审查。美国参议院上月通过了一项法案，若该法案成为法律，在美国上市公司将需接受公众公司会计监督委员会(PCAOB)的审查。
由于抗疫封锁导致更多消费者待在家中，带动手机游戏的需求激增。
消息人士称，Playtika已聘请摩根士丹利和其他银行担任此次IPO的承销商，计划在今年稍晚或明年初上市，但消息人士也提醒，上市时间、估值以及交易规模将视市况而定。
由于此事尚未对外公布，消息人士要求匿名。Playtika和摩根士丹利未予置评。
China-owned Playtika hires banks for $1 billion U.S. IPO
Playtika Ltd, a mobile gaming company owned by a Chinese investor group, has hired investment banks to prepare for a U.S. initial public offering that could raise around $1 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
Playtika’s preparations illustrate how some Chinese-owned companies continue to pursue U.S. listings, despite heightened scrutiny of their auditing standards by U.S. politicians and investors. Last month, the U.S. Senate passed a bill which, if enacted into law, would make U.S.-listed companies subject to inspection by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.
Playtika’s IPO would come amid a surge in demand for mobile gaming, as more consumers stay home during lockdowns aimed at curbing the COVID-19 pandemic.
Playtika has hired Morgan Stanley and other banks to underwrite the IPO and is aiming to go public either later this year or early in 2021, the sources said, cautioning that the timing, valuation and deal size are subject to market conditions.
Israel-based Playtika, which is known for its casino-themed games and operates apps for poker and solitaire, could be valued at around $10 billion in the IPO, the sources added.
The sources requested anonymity as the matter is confidential. Playtika and Morgan Stanley declined to comment.
In 2016, a group of Chinese investors including Giant Network Group Co Ltd and Yunfeng Capital, a private equity firm founded by Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma, acquired Playtika from Caesars Interactive Entertainment for $4.4 billion.
Founded in 2010, Playtika currently boasts 27 million monthly active users, according to its website.
The IPO market has seen a significant pickup following the pandemic-induced stock market downturn, as investors place bets on newly listed companies benefiting from an expected economic recovery.
Yet some Chinese IPO hopefuls face uncertainty in the wake of Luckin Coffee Inc’s accounting issues. The Chinese coffee chain said in May that Nasdaq had notified it of plans to delist it from the exchange, a month after it disclosed that some employees had fabricated sales accounts.
Online grocery firm Dada Nexus Ltd said Monday it aimed to raise up to $280.5 million on Nasdaq, the first major Chinese company IPO in the United States since tensions between Washington and Beijing escalated over the future of Hong Kong and the origins of the novel coronavirus.
