India’s richest eye slice of Alibaba’s mega $21.1-billion IPO

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com, which is looking to raise a mammoth $21.1 billion (Rs 126.6 lakh crore) by listing on the United States stock market, is generating huge interest among investors worldwide, including among high net worth individuals in India.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com, which is looking to raise a mammoth $21.1 billion (Rs 126.6 lakh crore) by listing on the United States stock market, is generating huge interest among investors worldwide, including among high net worth individuals in India.

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According to investment banking and brokerage house executives, apart from high net worth individuals (HNIs), fund managers have also sounded out brokers to place orders with their foreign financial partners when the initial public offering (IPO) opens.

Alibaba and its selling shareholders, which include chairman Jack Ma, vice-chairman Joe Tsai, and US Internet giant Yahoo Inc, plan to sell 320.1 million American depository shares in the $60-$66 per share price range, and is set to eclipse Visa Inc’s $19.7-billion IPO in 2008, the biggest US initial share sale till date.
Alibaba runs an e-commerce business, including a business-to-business portal by the same name. The shares will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange, under the symbol BABA.

According to Reserve Bank of India guidelines, resident Indians can remit up to $125,000 (Rs 75 lakh) per year abroad for investments in, among other things, stocks.

Indians can invest in the Alibaba IPO via an overseas trading account and some brokerages also offer the facility to invest in various stocks traded on US stock
exchanges. Also, there are several mutual funds in India, which have dedicated funds investing in US-listed corporations.

While large clients, particularly in the US and Europe, usually get priority from US underwriters, Indian HNIs are making an effort to at least get some shares in the highly anticipated IPO.