Hong Kong, October 31, 2012
— IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has agreed to invest $25 million equity in Fosun Pharma as part of the company’s public offering on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to help expand its business and increase the availability of quality and affordable drugs in China and other developing countries.
Listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange since 1998, Fosun Pharma is one of China’s leading pharmaceutical companies, distributing, selling, and manufacturing medicines as well as providing healthcare services. Fosun Pharma is also one of the largest suppliers of anti-malaria drugs to developing countries through international institutions like the World Health Organization and the International Red Cross. To date, it has provided anti-malaria drugs to more than 300 million people in Africa and Southeast Asia.
Sérgio Pimenta, IFC’s Director for East Asia and the Pacific, said, “Our relationship with Fosun Pharma demonstrates the wide range of IFC's product offering for Chinese private sector clients: after we provided local currency loans earlier, we are now a cornerstone equity investor at Fosun's Hong Kong public offering. By supporting companies like Fosun Pharma, we are helping to create jobs and increase the availability of affordable quality medicine.”
Earlier this year, Fosun Pharma received a 300 million Chinese yuan ($47 million) loan through IFC’s Renminbi Swap Facility. In 2006, IFC provided 320 million yuan ($40 million) through the issuance of a local-currency bond or “Panda bond.” The two loans are under IFC’s local currency finance program which allows IFC to provide loans in Renminbi to meet specific financing needs of its private sector clients in China and help them manage foreign-exchange risks.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. We help developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, mobilizing capital in international financial markets, and providing advisory services to businesses and governments. In FY12, our investments reached an all-time high of more than $20 billion, leveraging the power of the private sector to create jobs, spark innovation, and tackle the world’s most pressing development challenges. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
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