CSRC denies refinance rumor

The China Securities Regulatory Commission on Friday denied a market rumor that the refinancing figures for Chinese companies listed on the A-share market from January to July exceeded the total capital raised through initial public offerings over the past 10 years.

A spokesman for the commission said the value of refinancing by these companies in the first seven months this year totaled 343 billion yuan ($55.9 billion), 158.2 billion yuan by equity refinancing and 184.8 billion yuan through bond refinancing. The total amount of capital raised through IPOs from 2003 to 2012 was 1.88 trillion yuan.

"The refinancing of Chinese listed companies was market-oriented and their decision-making processes should be disclosed so that public investors learn the information a timely fashion," said the spokesman.

He added that shareholders of public companies can participate in refinancing decisions and they can choose different refinancing products according to their preferences.

Recent refinancing conditions for listed Chinese companies have been hot. Just last week, China Merchants Bank carried out a rights-offering plan for more than 30 billion yuan. BOE Technology Group also made a 46 billion yuan non-public offering to raise money.

"Although the scale of CMB's and BOE's refinancings were large, the figure for overall refinancing in the A-share market was normal," said Li Yizheng, a vice-president at China Securities Co Ltd.

The CSRC reiterated the regulation on property companies' refinancing would remain appropriately tight and it will cooperate with the Ministry of Land and Resources to crack down on illegal behavior, including property hoarding. Any property companies found doing so will not be allowed to launch initial public offerings or seek refinancing from the stock market.

Two listed property companies, Shanghai-listed Xinhu Zhongbao Co Ltd and Shenzhen-listed Guangdong Highsun Group Co Ltd, announced plans on Friday to finance new projects.

Direct financing for domestic developers in the mainland capital market was blocked for more than three years after Wuhan Langold Real Estate Co Ltd went public in November 2009 in Shenzhen.

A commission spokesman said a detailed timetable for the restarting of IPOs is under discussion. Although there have been as many as 746 companies awaiting the opportunity to list by the start of July, he said companies' applications are all market-oriented in that they can choose to proceed or not if given permission. He added every IPO examination and approval will be based on laws and rules.

Wang Ying in Shanghai contributed to this story.