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SOHO plans $359m bond float

By Li Fei (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-05-28 08:08

Pedestrians walk past the Jianwai Soho complex in Beijing. [China Daily]

SOHO China, the biggest property developer in Beijing's Central Business District, is filling up its war chest for future acquisitions with a $359 million bond issue.

The Hong Kong-listed developer said the proceeds from the five-year convertible bonds, with a coupon rate of 3.75 percent a year, would be earmarked for general corporate purposes and strategic acquisitions.

The bonds will be convertible into 476.2 million ordinary shares, accounting for 8.4 percent of SOHO's enlarged share capital. The bond will be issued at HK$5.88 each, representing a 20 percent premium over the stock closing price of HK$4.90 on Tuesday.

The bond sale followed the 10 billion yuan five-year credit line at favorable terms from Bank of China secured by the company in March.

The developer said earlier that it would take advantage of the slump in the property market in Beijing and other major cities, notably Shanghai, to hunt for bargains as cash-strapped foreign funds and local developers were seen to be rushing to dispose their holdings to recoup capital.

"The company will buy large distressed commercial projects, half-built or completed, in Beijing and Shanghai as their prices have fallen the steepest and are under the greatest pressure," SOHO said in an exchange filing in March.

SOHO, which rose to prominence by contracting Western architects to design and build flashy commercial and residential properties in old industrial plots, would be particularly interested in buying distressed commercial projects with prime locations in Beijing and Shanghai, its CEO Zhang Jin said earlier.

The Beijing-based developer will also shift its focus to commercial property from residential projects because of the unclear future of China's housing market, it said.

SOHO purchased only two projects - Chaoyangmen SOHO and Zhongguancun SOHO - for an aggregated 6.43 billion yuan last year, after taking a wait-and-see approach in the past few years.

Related readings:  SOHO China to capitalize on weak property market  Soho gets 10b yuan credit line  SOHO China incurs net loss of 145.8m yuan  SOHO China strikes 5.5b-yuan property deal

The company chalked up 399 million yuan net profit last year, against 1.97 billion yuan in 2007; a sharp drop that the company said was mainly due to the delay of Sanlitun SOHO, in Beijing.

The developer recorded a 92 percent gain in pre-sales to 7.7 billion yuan in 2008.

SOHO had completed construction of approximately 1.69 million sq m of gross floor area (GFA) by the end of 2008, according to its website.

The developer has another 1.20 million sq m of GFA presently under development.

The company will book 1 billion yuan of proceeds in 2009 from real estate sold before completion in 2008, the company said before.