Linklaters advises State Grid on its RMB 4bn debut issuance

Linklaters advised State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) on its offshore issuance of RMB 4bn bonds. The transaction marks SGCC’s inaugural offshore RMB bond issuance and the first 10-year offshore RMB bond issuance by a central state-owned enterprise (central SOE), setting records for both the largest single issuance size and the longest tenor for offshore RMB bonds by a central SOE. 

The offering comprises two tranches, including RMB 2bn five-year bonds with a coupon rate of 2.00% and RMB 2bn 10-year bonds with a coupon rate of 2.25%. This issuance also marks SGCC’s return to the international capital markets after four years, attracting a broad spectrum of investors worldwide. The robust investor interest underscores the international market’s confidence in Chinese enterprises and sets a new benchmark for the offshore RMB market.

Linklaters’s team was led by capital markets partners Lipton Li and Min Fang, with support from solicitor Xiaoming Zhong and associate Ruby Xie.

Linklaters’ Asia capital markets team has been deeply involved in the internationalisation of the RMB, consistently advising on landmark transactions in the RMB bond issuance and cross-border capital markets space. The team has not only participated in all of SGCC’s previous international issuances, but also recently advised the PRC government on its inaugural RMB-denominated green sovereign bond issuance, the debut RMB green bond issuance by MTR Corporation, and multiple RMB bond issuances by the Airport Authority Hong Kong and the Hong Kong SAR Government.