Dear Rockstar,
Today feels weird for Mummy and she wanted to write to you about it. Agricultural Bank of China Ltd (ABC) is IPO-ing and is being compared to Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC)’s Initial Public Offering on 27 October 2006 (then the world’s largest).
It was during the ICBC IPO that Mummy first proved herself as a dealer, very shortly after joining what was then one of the top 5 private banks in Hong Kong. On that first day, options were knocking out every 20 minutes. Counterparts kept hitting their limits and we would have to repeatedly re-price everything. And when the relationship managers servicing the bank’s clients couldn’t call through to execution lines (because everyone was calling at the same time), they crowded into our dealing room, trying to push their order tickets in, even as the market ran. It became very important to send the “pricing no longer good” emails out immediately we learned counterparts had hit limits, in case the relationship managers we served held us to the previous more favorable derivative pricing that our counterparts were no longer honoring.
ICBC was the tip of the proverbial iceberg in Hong Kong stock market trade volume that would completely overwhelm our team from then on. The 20,000 milestone in the Hang Seng Index was passed for the first time on 28 December 2006, then barely 10 months later on 18 October 2007 the 30,000 milestone was passed.
And Mummy was in a completely different place. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine how she would change, when she became your Mummy. Colleagues who hadn’t seen her belly (because they only dealt with her over the phone, or had only seen her seated in meetings) would start when they suddenly realized you were along with Mummy for the ride everywhere she went (and what a ride it was). And then you were born on 20 December 2007.
Today ABC has an IPO of a similar size. IPOs are sales of shares in companies who want to expand and are looking for the money to do so. Among other things, these companies would choose a time and price (of the shares) at which to raise money. So IPOs happen when companies decide it’s the right time to expand and believe they’ll get a good price for selling shares. But this day is during a financial crisis that has seen so many casualties. Lehman. Citi. Goldman. Greece. So many good, capable people Mummy knows have left (or can’t wait to leave) the industry. Mummy believes there are many more she doesn’t know.
Mummy types this 15 minutes before Hong Kong closes it’s afternoon session. According to Bloomberg, Chinese banks are trading down. The Hang Seng Index is down. (ABC is yet to start trading). “Banks have been ignoring the weak market sentiment and keep announcing big fundraising plans,” Bloomberg quotes Wei Wei, an analyst at West China Securities Co. in Shanghai. Mummy thinks it’s because they still have to carry on with their jobs despite where the market really is. And it’s the banks that usually underwrite (ie advise) companies on their IPOs.
And today, Mummy no longer works for a bank. She is, proudly, blessedly, your Mummy fulltime. You and Mummy spent this morning cruising Wellcome (of the 2 Ls) supermarket – you in the car-shaped shopping cart, Mummy pointing out interesting (and very delicious) vegetables as she pushed you along.
Then Playtown opened so we shot foam balls from big airguns (which you had to stand on a bucket to reach, but still insisted on working by yourself) before you announced you were hungry and we had noodles with eggs and tofu at Saint’s Alp café, then finishing up our remaining HKD$5 coins at the kiddie car and train rides with the funny music on our way out.
You’d fallen asleep in the red taxi car before we reached home so Mummy laid you on her bed and has been typing this since.
Mummy is right where she wants to be today.
Sincerely,
Mummy
Ps: The Hang Seng Index closed at 19857.07, down 227.05 points or 1.13%, 10 minutes ago.
Pps: You struck a deal with Mummy this week – you won’t go to work if Mummy promises she won’t either.
