One of the defining deals of 2010 will no doubt be Agricultural Bank of China’s long-awaited dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Not only did it manage to squeeze past Industrial and Commercial Bank of China ICBC to become the world’s largest-ever IPO at $22.1 billion, but it was also completed in just three months and resulted in a record pay-day for the investment banks involved. With three months having passed since the Hong Kong listing on July 16 and the share price up 30%, we decided to take a closer look at how the deal came together.
What we found was an IPO that was meticulously planned by the issuer to the extent...