King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) has advised Xinhu (BVI) Holding Company Limited as its US and PRC counsel on its US$700 million 6.00% guaranteed senior notes offering due 2020 guaranteed by Xinhu Zhongbao Co., Ltd (Xinhu Zhongbao). The transaction marks the largest debut high yield bond issuance by a PRC company since January 2013, according to the Bloomberg database.

Commenting on the deal, Hong Kong-based partner Hao Zhou said, “We are delighted to have supported our client with this record breaking transaction. It is widely anticipated that high-yield bond issuances will surge in 2017. Statistics have shown that the total deal volume for high-yield bond issuances in Asia outside of Australasia and Japan amounted to US$9.56 billion as of 13 February – the strongest start to any year since 2000.”

KWM’s international DCM team has advised on 16 high-yield bond issuances since 2015, all of which were by first time issuers. “All high yield practitioners know that debut issuances require tremendous expertise, resources and commitment. With a proven track record, our team continues to be busy with a strong pipeline in this space.” Hao Zhou said.

Xinhu Zhongbao, one of the largest A-share listed company in Zhejiang province, is principally engaged in real estate development, finance and other investments. It was ranked among 2016 top 10 Shanghai and Shenzhen Exchange-listed real estate companies by overall strength jointly determined by the Development Research Center of the State Council, Real Estate Institute of Tsinghua University and China Index Academy based on a comprehensive set of criteria, including size, economy value added, investment value and financial risk management.

The KWM US team based in Hong Kong was led by partner Hao Zhou, supported by senior associates Annie Shen and David Liao. The KWM PRC team based in Hangzhou was led by partner Huang Renzhong.