King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) has advised Guangzhou Rural Commercial Bank (Stock Code: 1551) as its PRC, Hong Kong and US counsel on its US$1.07 billion (before the exercise of the over-allotment option) initial public offering and listing on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. This is one of the biggest listings in Hong Kong in this year.

This is also the third bank IPO where KWM provided one-stop legal services covering PRC, Hong Kong and US securities laws, following Bank of Qingdao and Bank of Zhengzhou’s successful listing in Hong Kong in December 2015.

Commenting on the deal, KWM’s Chairman of China Zhang Yi said, “This is a testament to our strength in the financial services sector and also the firm’s capability to execute complex and high profile IPOs. Clients increasingly see the benefits of integrated one firm solutions, Chinese clients in particular. KWM has an unrivalled track record of providing seamless onshore and offshore services, in capital market transactions as well as other cross-border matters.”

Guangzhou Rural Commercial Bank ranked fourth among rural commercial banks in China in terms of tier-one capital, and is the largest rural commercial bank in Guangdong Province in terms of total assets, net assets, deposits, loans, operating income and net profits.

The King & Wood Mallesons team was led by Guangzhou based partners Zhao Zhen and Wang Peng , Hong Kong partner Candy Chan, and US Securities partner Christine Chen.