The proposal values the group at $4.2bn and will involve delisting from the Singapore Exchange. Alibaba and Ant Group have agreed to buy 13 floors of Mandarin Oriental's new Hong Kong office building One Causeway Bay; the group is expanding in Seoul.

CEO Darren Wang described the process to FA as “difficult” and said that reaching out to more US-based private investors, while expanding globally, is the next step.

Prudential Financial is selling its 13% stake in the Hong Kong-headquartered reinsurer, which is majority owned by Chinese conglomerate Fosun.

Hari Janakiraman, head of industry and innovation, transaction banking at ANZ, discussed legal frameworks, digital standards and tokenisation pilots, including Australia's Project Acacia, with FA in an exclusive interview.

Rich Chun is appointed managing director, head of Asia at Tradeweb, effective immediately; he joins from HPS Investment Partners.

The move is in response to a US investigation into China's maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sectors. The Hang Seng Index slumped on October 13 and 14 as US and China trade tensions ramp up.

Gunther Hamm, president of HOPU Investments, discussed with FA key drivers for the growing popularity of investors taking controlling stakes of companies in Asia.

The Equity Market Development Plan has helped boost IPOs and valuations this year, including SGX's appeal for secondary listings, such as US data firm AvePoint. FA spoke with experts at Cooley and Grasshopper Asia.

Adam Zhang, managing director of Collabrium Partners, shares his views with FA on how Chinese companies are changing their approach to cross-border M&A, including finding opportunities in Southeast Asia and in technology.

The HK$155 a share offer is a 33% premium over Hang Seng's 30-day average closing price; HSBC already owns 63% of the HKEX-listed bank. Hang Seng's after tax profits declined 30% in H1 2025. HSBC has paused buybacks.