Ant plans to list simultaneously in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and on Shanghai’s STAR Market. If Ant Group manages to achieve its target, it could surpass the $29.4 bn raised by Saudi national oil and gas company Aramco.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma recently said during the Bund Summit in the eastern financial hub of Shanghai, “It’s the first time that the pricing of such a big listing – the largest in human history – has been determined outside New York City” he told the Bund Summit in the eastern financial hub of Shanghai. We didn’t dare to think about it five years ago, or even three years ago. But a miracle just occurred.”

The pricing is expected to be announced officially next week. Alibaba holds a 33 percent stake in Ant Group. Fintech firm Alipay, owned by Ant Group and which was previously known as Ant Financial, claimed to earmark 1.3 billion annual active users by the end of March 2020.

It was earlier reported that Ant is seeking a valuation of more than $200 billion in a Hong Kong IPO.

In July, executive chairman Eric Jing of Ant, said in the press release, “The innovative measures implemented by Shanghai Star market and the Hong Kong stock exchange have opened the doors for global investors to access leading-edge technology companies from the most dynamic economies in the world and for those companies to have greater access to the capital markets.”

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The company is expected to issue 500 million new ordinary shares along with a 75 million greenshoe option. Reportedly, around 50 million of these shares will be reserved for retail investors. The ecommerce giant will price its shares at a 2.8 percent discount to its last closing price in New York.

Alibaba’s listing will also be Hong Kong’s largest initial public offering since insurance giant AIA raised $20.5 billion in 2010.

Alibaba is expected to start trading its shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange from November 26, 2019.

According to earlier media reports, the company planned to raise around $13.4 billion by exercising the greenshoe option. The listing was scheduled to take place earlier this year, but it was postponed due to the anti-government protests taking place in the streets of Hong Kong.

Alibaba’s decision to go ahead with the listing will come as a sign of relief for Hong Kong as the political instability has pushed Hong Kong to the brink of a recession.

Travis Lundy, an analyst at Quiddity Advisors referred to Alibaba’s listing in Hong Kong as ‘escape valve listing’.

He told the media, “Investors can take delivery or buy and sell shares in Hong Kong should US-China relations worsen. This should be considered a non-negligible benefit for any US-listed Chinese company.”

Earlier in 2014, Alibaba raised $25 billion in its New York IPO, which still holds the record of the world’s largest share sale. However, Aramco is expected to break Alibaba’s record this year.

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