Swelled by the success of its previous Vodafone exchangeable last September, Hutchison Whampoa has kicked off the year with a near perfect copy of last year's deal. A three-year, $2.5 billion exchangeable with a $500 million greenshoe is being sold to global investors. The conversion price is set at 310 pence, which equates to a 38% premium to last Friday's close. Coincidentally, the previous deal was also launched on a Monday.
The final exchange premium will not be known until books close tonight in London but it is likely to be similar to the present premium as the lead managers, Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch, have employed an Accelerated Bookbuild to maintain price stability...
