DJI Holdings seeks secondary NASDAQ listing
Chinese lottery distributor says enhanced market liquidity will aid operation as Chinese government makes tentative steps towards more open lottery regulation
DJI Holdings will seek a secondary listing on the NASDAQ exchange as Beijing relaxes the rules on provincial operators for the first time since February’s suspension of online lottery products.
The Chinese lottery operator is already listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market, but believes that a presence in New York would enable it to attract the stronger base of institutional shareholders enjoyed by rivals in the sector.
The firm began exploring such a listing at the end of last year, but Beijing’s temporary suspension of online lottery products across China has slowed the process.
DJI was hit hard by the suspension, posting a 38% decline in H1 revenues in September, but the operator is bullish about its longer term prospects, buoyed by a government announcement earlier this month which hands provincial lotteries greater flexibility in the way they operate, even though online lottery products remain banned.
“With the first steps towards regulatory change already taken, DJI is progressing a secondary listing in order to focus fully in 2016 on the opportunities that we expect the new lottery landscape to present,” DJI’s chief executive Darren Mercer said.
The firm, which is making moves to diversify into the broader sports sector, said it expects the listing to be completed during Q1 2016.
Read the first part of our investigation into the Chinese market here.