2021 Global Top 100 Publicly Listed Companies by Market Capitalization:

Rank 1: Apple Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 2.051 trillion; Rank 2: Saudi Aramco, headquartered in Saudi Arabia, operating in the energy sector, with a market capitalization of USD 1.920 trillion; Rank 3: Microsoft Corp., headquartered in the United States, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 1.778 trillion; Rank 4: Amazon.com Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the consumer discretionary sector, with a market capitalization of USD 1.558 trillion; Rank 5: Alphabet Inc. (parent company of Google), headquartered in the United States, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 1.393 trillion; Rank 6: Facebook Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 839 billion; Rank 7: Tencent, headquartered in China, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 753 billion; Rank 8: Tesla Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the consumer discretionary sector, with a market capitalization of USD 641 billion; Rank 9: Alibaba Group, headquartered in China, operating in the consumer discretionary sector, with a market capitalization of USD 615 billion; Rank 10: Berkshire Hathaway, headquartered in the United States, operating in the financial sector, with a market capitalization of USD 588 billion; Rank 11: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), headquartered in Taiwan, China, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 534 billion; Rank 12: Visa Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the industrials sector, with a market capitalization of USD 468 billion; Rank 13: JPMorgan Chase & Co., headquartered in the United States, operating in the financial sector, with a market capitalization of USD 465 billion; Rank 14: Johnson & Johnson, headquartered in the United States, operating in the healthcare sector, with a market capitalization of USD 433 billion; Rank 15: Samsung Electronics, headquartered in South Korea, operating in the technology sector, with a market capitalization of USD 431 billion; Rank 16: Kweichow Moutai, headquartered in China, operating in the consumer staples sector, with a market capitalization of USD 385 billion; Rank 17: Walmart Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the consumer discretionary sector, with a market capitalization of USD 383 billion; Rank 18: Mastercard Inc., headquartered in the United States, operating in the industrials sector, with a market capitalization of USD 354 billion; Rank 19: UnitedHealth Group, headquartered in the United States, operating in the healthcare sector, with a market capitalization of USD 352 billion;

[Key Point] Acquisitions of Listed Companies in Capital Operations

When discussing acquisitions of listed companies, do terms such as “barbarians at the gate,” “white knights,” and “poison pills” come to mind—evoking dramatic corporate battles filled with strategic maneuvers? In practice, however, public tender offers for listed companies and defensive anti-takeover measures are relatively rare. Nevertheless, the Administrative Measures for Acquisitions of Listed Companies frequently surfaces in various capital operations. During periods when IPO review cycles are long and outcomes highly uncertain, achieving asset listing through mergers and acquisitions involving listed companies represents a comparatively swift route. When a listed company issues shares to acquire assets, the original shareholders of the target assets may thereby become shareholders of the listed company upon completion of the restructuring. Depending on the scale and valuation of the target assets, if their metrics meet the criteria stipulated under Article 13 of the Administrative Measures for Material Asset Restructuring of Listed Companies, the restructuring may result in a change of control of the listed company—and potentially constitute a backdoor listing. From the perspective of the original shareholders of the target assets, they receive newly issued shares of the listed company as consideration, thereby becoming acquirers under applicable regulations. Consequently, they must disclose a restructuring report, file for registration with the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), and also issue either an acquisition report or an equity interest change report. Even if the transaction does not meet the material asset restructuring thresholds set forth in Article 11 of the Administrative Measures for Material Asset Restructuring of Listed Companies, the original shareholders of the target assets may still be required to file an equity interest change report, depending on the proportion of listed company shares they acquire. Concrete examples include: 1. Lekai New Materials (Stock Code: 300446) issued shares in 2022 to acquire assets from Sichuan Aerospace Industry Group Co., Ltd. and others. As a result, the shareholding of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and its concerted parties in the listed company increased from 30.61% to 66.83%, triggering a mandatory tender offer. However, pursuant to Article 63 of the Administrative Measures for Acquisitions of Listed Companies, the tender offer requirement was waived. Prior to completion of the restructuring, the listed company disclosed a summary of the acquisition report. 2. Boshen Shares (Stock Code: 002282) issued shares in 2021 to acquire assets and concurrently raised配套 financing. Following the subscription by the TieTou (Jinan) Equity Investment Fund Partnership (Limited Partnership) to the financing round, its stake in the listed company exceeded 5%, prompting disclosure of a simplified equity interest change report. Issuing shares to specific investors may also trigger acquisition-related obligations where such issuance causes changes in the investors’ equity interests in the listed company. If the specific investor is already the controlling shareholder, considerations arise regarding whether a mandatory tender offer will be triggered and whether exemption from such an offer is available; accordingly, these matters should be proactively addressed during transaction planning. A concrete example is Angcai High-Tech (Stock Code: 600207), which conducted a non-public share offering in 2021. Prior to the offering, Henan Investment Group Co., Ltd.—the controlling shareholder—held 47.26% of the listed company’s shares. It committed that: (1) if, following the non-public offering, its shareholding increase relative to the twelve-month period preceding the offering does not exceed 2% (i.e., post-offering shareholding percentage − pre-offering shareholding percentage ≤ 2%), then the shares subscribed in the non-public offering shall be locked up for 18 months from the date of issuance completion; and (2) if its shareholding increase exceeds 2% (i.e., post-offering shareholding percentage − pre-offering shareholding percentage > 2%), then the subscribed shares shall be locked up for 36 months from the date of issuance completion.

Linde PLC Shares Acquired by Cypress Asset Management Inc.

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Cypress Asset Management acquired $5.7M worth of Linde PLC shares. Analysts maintain a Buy rating following quarterly results that beat revenue and EPS estimates.

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