Investment Bankers, Companies Got Extra Reason to Cheer on New Year’s Eve

The sun was setting on the last day of the 2013 and while most people were rushing home to celebrate New Year’s Eve, a group of business people and investment bankers was holding a tense countdown of their own.

The group was waiting for the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) to name companies it would allow to go public. For those who had labored toward getting this permission for months, it was their last chance to end 2013 with a victory.

Everyone gathered in the hallways outside the CSRC’s IPO offices in Fukai Mansion, in the heart of the capital’s financial district, looked anxious. Some were pacing while others sat on benches and constantly checked their mobile phones. Weak reception in the building only added to the tension.

The clock was ticking toward 6:30 p.m. and – just when the underwriters at one securities firm were losing hope and making plans for most of them to go home early – they were handed the CSRC’s final approval. They were allowed to go public anytime within the next year. The group burst into cheers and applause. They gathered all their documents to leave, having an extra reason to celebrate that night.

“There is still a pile of things for us to do, including drafting the announcement and organizing a press conference,” one of the underwriters said.

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