China Property Site KE Raises $2.1 Billion in U.S. Share Sale

(Bloomberg) — Chinese online real estate platform KE Holdings Inc. will raise $2.1 billion in a follow-on offering after pricing the new shares at a 5% discount to their last close, according to people familiar with the matter.

The share sale comes just over three months after KE went public in New York, making it the fastest-ever return to selling shares by a U.S.-listed Chinese company after its initial public offering, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Its American depositary receipts have more than tripled in value since the $2.4 billion float in August, marking a much-needed win for one of its backers, SoftBank Group Corp.

KE will sell 35.4 million American depositary shares at $58 each, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. The price represents a discount of 5.2% to KE’s closing price Wednesday of $61.17. A representative for KE did not respond to a request for comment.

Japanese conglomerate SoftBank invested $1.35 billion last November in the Beijing-based company, which runs a site called Beike, or “seashells.” KE uses a national chain of physical real estate offices that has been around for almost two decades, paired with a two-year-old digital platform that helps match buyers and sellers using artificial intelligence algorithms. KE’s other backers include Hillhouse Capital and Tencent Holdings Ltd.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and China Renaissance Holdings Ltd. led KE’s offering, according to a prospectus.

KE is not the only Chinese company raising big funds in the U.S. market this week. E-commerce company Pinduoduo Inc. raised a combined $5.34 billion Wednesday from an upsized sale of 28.7 million American depositary shares as well as a five-year zero-coupon convertible bond, according to a statement.

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