On October 30th, Li Ka-shing once again sold H-shares of China Postal Savings Bank, marking the fourth time he has reduced his holdings in the bank since mid-October, totaling over 157 million shares sold. In addition, the discounted sales of mainland properties by Li Ka-shing’s real estate companies this year have also attracted attention.
According to information disclosed by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on October 30th, Li Ka-shing and his son, Victor Li, reduced their holdings of 215,300 shares of Postal Savings Bank H-shares on the exchange, involving approximately 93.3 million Hong Kong dollars. Following this sale, the father and son’s holdings in Postal Savings Bank H-shares decreased to 1.186 billion shares, with a shareholding percentage of 5.97%.
This marks the fourth time Li Ka-shing and his son have reduced their holdings in Postal Savings Bank in October.
According to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, on October 14th, Li Ka-shing and Victor Li sold approximately 78.517 million shares of Postal Savings Bank H-shares at an average price of 4.6711 Hong Kong dollars per share. On October 17th, they sold around 22.801 million shares at an average price of 4.7375 Hong Kong dollars per share. On October 24th, they continued to sell about 35.734 million shares at an average price of 4.6286 Hong Kong dollars per share.
Including this latest sale, up to now, Li Ka-shing and his son have consecutively reduced their holdings in Postal Savings Bank H-shares four times this month, with a rough calculation showing a total reduction of over 157 million shares, involving funds exceeding 733 million yuan.
Regarding the recent sale of a portion of Postal Savings Bank H-shares held by the Li Ka-shing Foundation, a spokesperson from Cheung Kong Group responded to a “Securities China” reporter on the evening of October 30th, stating that the recent reduction in shares was part of the Foundation’s routine financial operations and not related to the bank’s operational development.
Established in 1980, the Li Ka-shing Foundation primarily focuses on supporting education and medical projects. Mr. Li Ka-shing has contributed over 30 billion Hong Kong dollars to promote education, medical care, and poverty alleviation projects, with 80% of the projects located in mainland China and Hong Kong.
In September 2016, Postal Savings Bank was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. At the time of listing, a spokesperson for the Cheung Kong Group voluntarily disclosed that Li Ka-shing, through his charitable foundation and eldest son Victor Li, held redeemable preference shares in Postal Savings Bank equivalent to a 11.62% equity interest in H-shares. Based on the market price at that time, the equity was valued at over 10 billion Hong Kong dollars, with the spokesperson emphasizing that Li Ka-shing viewed this as a long-term investment.
Since the listing of Postal Savings Bank H-shares, Li Ka-shing and Victor Li previously sold 50,000 shares on September 29, 2022, at a price of 4.71 Hong Kong dollars per share, involving 235,500 Hong Kong dollars.
On May 11, 2023, they sold 22.49 million shares at a price of 5.43 Hong Kong dollars per share, amounting to 1.22 billion Hong Kong dollars.
Li Ka-shing, aged 96, is a legendary entrepreneur who has been the richest person in Hong Kong for several years in a row. His sons, Victor Li and Richard Li, are also prominent businessmen. Victor Li mainly oversees core assets of the Li Ka-shing family, including the Cheung Kong Group.
Of note, Li Ka-shing’s real estate companies have garnered attention this year through multiple discounted property sales.
According to the China Fund News, after obtaining presale permits over a year ago, Li Ka-shing launched the last real estate project in Beijing, Yu Cuiyuan. On October 26th, the project, which had a previously filed price close to 100,000 yuan per square meter, released 50 units at only 76,000 yuan per square meter, leading to a frenzy of purchases.
According to data from Beike platform, Yu Cuiyuan as a new development is priced lower than surrounding second-hand properties of the same category.
The Yu Cuiyuan project is developed by Wharf Holdings, a subsidiary of Li Ka-shing’s Hutchison Whampoa Real Estate. The total land area of the project is approximately 400,000 square meters, acquired by Wharf Holdings for 700 million yuan in 2001, with a floor price of just 1,750 yuan per square meter.
Four years after the land acquisition, the first phase of the development, Yicuiyuan, was opened by Cheung Kong in 2005, entering a long developmental stage. Over 20 years later, the second phase of the project, Yu Cuiyuan, was launched this year. After 23 years, the property price has surged 43 times compared to the land price.
Prior to this, several other properties launched by Li Ka-shing in mainland China and Hong Kong have also been sold at discounted rates, with discounts of up to 50%.