Russia-China fund makes first partial exit from investment with 'significant yield'

BEIJING - The Russia-China Investment Fund (RCIF) sold a portion of its stake for a large profit and played a significant role in the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Detsky Mir, the leading children's goods retailer in Russia, according to a press release on Wednesday.

The IPO is the first exit from an investment for RCIF, established by the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and the China Investment Corporation, according to RCIF's release emailed to Xinhua.

The release quoted Kirill Dmitriev, co-CEO of RCIF and CEO of RDIF, as saying that the IPO of Detsky Mir is a landmark transaction for the Russian market.

"Detsky Mir is an example of a fast-growing Russian company, which demonstrates impressive results and its growth will accelerate alongside the resumption of growth in the Russian economy," said Dmitriev.

The success of this deal confirms strong demand from international investors for public placements of top quality Russian companies. It has also opened the door for other Russian issuers looking at public markets, Dmitriev added.

Hu Bing, co-CEO of RCIF, said that RCIF remains the largest minority shareholder of Detsky Mir, whose IPO was an important event for the Russian equity market and revealed the high interest of foreign investors in Russian assets.

The investment in Detsky Mir is also an important success story for Chinese investors working in Russia and interested in investments in the country, Hu said.

"We intend to further implement successful projects and investment in Russia," Hu added.

Through the sale, RCIF has achieved a significant exit yield on an investment and has contributed to the increased liquidity of Detsky Mir's shares for new shareholders, according to the release.