Business Valuation

Property Valuation

Corporate Transaction 

Previously, we are honored to be engaged by COSCO SHIPPING Holdings Co., Ltd. (1919.HK) in providing PPA valuation services for their Acquisition of Orient Overseas (Int’l) Ltd. (316.HK). This was the largest M&amp;A transaction in the global shipping industry in terms of deal price.
 
Please <a href="../../../../../uploads/CaseHighlight_COSCO_20190503_87da489474.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a> to know more about the acquisition and its transaction synergy and our engagement. 
 
<img src="../../../../../uploads/a_a82449e3a4.png" alt="" width="700" height="495" /><a href="../../../../../uploads/CaseHighlight_COSCO_20190503_87da489474.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img src="../../../../../uploads/a_e1c764fdde.png" alt="" width="700" height="493" /></a>

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CFA, FCPA, FCPA (Aust.), MRICS, RICS Registered Valuer
Vincent is the Founder and Managing Director of AVISTA Group, who leads the firm’s Valuation Advisory, Risk Management Advisory, ESG Advisory and Corporate Advisory services in Hong Kong and the PRC.
Vincent has 20 years experiences in valuation advisory, M&amp;A advisory, business consulting and corporate investment, advising clients in a range of industries, including TMT, financial services, pharmaceutical and energy etc. Hence, He has been leading the firm to make breakthroughs in these areas.
Before founding AVISTA, Vincent served as an Associate Director of PwC and was in charge of the valuation division in Beijing. He has advised numerous large M&amp;A deals in both China and overseas for multinational corporations and Chinese state-owned enterprises. He also has extensive experiences in providing valuation services for US and HK IPO listing.

VINCENT PANG

Managing Director

Hailey is responsible for business valuation, intangible asset valuation and financial instrument valuation service for financial reporting and consulting purposes.
Hailey has over 10 years’ experience in valuation service and M&amp;A financial advisory service in China. Before joining AVISTA, Hailey was a manager in PricewaterhouseCoopers with working experience in both Valuation Service and Corporate Finance Department.
During the past years, Hailey has participated in several large M&amp;A deals to provide modeling, pricing valuation or valuation advisory service. Besides, she was involved in numerous projects for US and HK listed or pre-IPO listing companies to review their valuation prepared for financial reporting purpose. In addition, she also acted as a financial advisor for several private equity financing and outbound acquisition projects.

HAILEY JIN

Director

CFA, FCPA, LL.M, MRICS, RICS Registered Valuer
Ivan is mainly responsible for business valuation, intangible asset valuation and financial instruments valuation for financial reporting purpose and consulting &amp; advisory purpose.
Ivan has 10 years’ experience in valuation sector. Prior to joining AVISTA, Ivan has worked with KPMG in Risk Advisory Service and Assurance Departments. Ivan has led several local and overseas valuation and advisory projects across different industries for transaction, IPO and financial reporting purposes.

IVAN LUI

Case Highlight - Acquisition of Orient Overseas (Int'l) Ltd. by Cosco Shipping Holdings Co., Ltd.

With reference to a guidance document issued by the China Appraisal Society (“CAS”) in relation to discount rate calculation, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (“CSRC”) launched the Regulatory Guidance - Valuation (the “Guidance”) in January 2021 to standardize the parameters of discount rate calculation in the income approach.
 
The Guidance provides specific requirements for the parameters in Capital Asset Pricing Model (“CAPM”) and Weighted Average Cost of Capital (“WACC”), including risk-free rate, market risk premium, beta, capital structure, specific risk premium and expected return of debt.
 
With AVISTA’s experience in business valuation, the key points of the Guidance for the discount rate calculation are outlined below.
 
Background and Objective 
 
The discrepancies for the current valuation practices in the income approach have been prevailing among valuation entities (“Entities”), ranging from sample selection, parameters’ determination and calculation methodology. Meanwhile, the valuation process may also be influenced by complicated and subjective judgment, which would impact the reliability of company’s financial data and valuation result.
 
Accordingly, the CSRC formulates the Guidance in order to standardize the discount rate calculation, thereby enhancing the regulations in the valuation industry.
 
Fundamental Requirements 
 
The Guidance enumerates 3 fundamental requirements to the Entities highlighting the consistency and reasonableness in the discount rate calculation.
 
<ol>
<li>The Entities must formulate a set of consistent principles and methods for discount rate calculation. Upon formulation, the principles and methods could not be revised at discretion afterward to ensure the consistency of valuation projects. </li>
<li>The Entities must ensure the reasonableness of discount rate calculation on multiple valuation dates. The Entities should clarify any significant changes of parameters from the previous valuation date in the valuation report. </li>
<li>The Entities must ensure the alignment between discount rate and expected return, which requires CAPM in line with the Free Cash Flow to the Equity (“FCFE”) and WACC in line with the Free Cash Flow to the Firm (“FCFF”). </li>
</ol>
Instructions on Parameters
 
The Guidance provides instructions for 6 parameters typically used in the discount rate calculation. In general, the Guidance requires the Entities to disclose parameter-related methods, analytical processes and data sources in the valuation reports. The details of the instructions to each parameter are specified below.
 
<ol>
<li>Risk-free rate
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>China 10-year or above government bond and its yield to maturity should be adopted under the assumption of going concern. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Market risk premium
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>If the primary business of the target company to be valued (the “Target”) is within China’s territory, the historical risk premium data of China Securities Market index should be adopted as a priority. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Beta
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Entities should take into account the enterprise size, profitability, growth, etc. in their consideration of comparability of comparable company to determine the beta, as well as select the beta with the appropriate time horizon. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li> Capital structure 
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Entities must conduct analysis for the discrepancies between the Target and comparable company as well as the development stage of the Target with reference to the adopted capital structure, alongside disclosure and clarification. </li>
<li>The debt-to-equity ratio should be measured by market value. Clarification should be provided in the valuation report if book value is used. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Specific risk premium 
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Entities must evaluate the Target’s risk characteristics, enterprise size, core competitiveness, etc. when determining the specific risk premium. </li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Expected return of debt 
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Entities must assess the Target’s operating performance, capital structure, credit risk, etc. if Loan Prime Rate (“LPR”) is taken as reference. </li>
<li>The Entities must assess the Target’s financing options, cost of debt, solvency, etc. if non-market interest rates are adopted. </li>
</ul>
</li>
</ol>
To read the full Regulatory Guidance released by CSRC, please click <a href="http://www.csrc.gov.cn/pub/newsite/ztzl/jggzsyzy/202101/t20210122_391113.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. (Available in Chinese version only) 
AVISTA’s Professional Services for Business Valuation
 
As a professional valuation and financial advisory firm, AVISTA provides reliable business valuation services and accommodates the valuation needs in various transactions, including merger and restructuring. Our valuation experts are ready to advise you on asset valuation in compliance with the latest regulatory guidance.
 
For further information or enquiries regarding the potential valuation impact of the CSRC’s regulatory guidance on discount rate calculation, please feel free to contact us.

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CSRC Regulatory Guidance on Discount Rate Calculation in Income Approach

A growing concern of sustainability has been emerging in the investment community over the past decade. It was an old thought that considering sustainability for society implied sacrificing financial returns of investment. The development of Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) investing, however, has demonstrated a different story.
 
This publication introduces the engagement of PRI from investor community, various ESG assessments in capital market such as MSCI ESG Ratings, the shift in focus on ESG issues due to the preferences of younger generation’s investors and COVID-19, and also the prevalence of green investment in the global investment community.
 
Please <a href="../../../../../uploads/The_Emergence_of_Sustainability_Agenda_to_Investment_ESG_Investing_a014243ea9.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">click here</a> to read the full publication.
 
<a href="../../../../../uploads/The_Emergence_of_Sustainability_Agenda_to_Investment_ESG_Investing_a014243ea9.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img src="../../../../../uploads/cover_dea6ff8687.JPG" width="600" /></a>

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The Emergence of Sustainability Agenda to Investment—ESG Investing

The effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines and the control measures are still the key for the future movement of the Hong Kong office market. The policy shift with the advancement of the investors and the office operators play a role in supporting the office market and there is a growing demand for co-working office space in Greater Bay Area due to asset enhancement and strategic connectivity between cities.
 
Click <a href="../../../../../uploads/AVISTA_HK_Office_Market_Insights_Q4_2020_EN_e3f1cdd9df.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> to read the insights.
 
<a href="../../../../../uploads/AVISTA_HK_Office_Market_Insights_Q4_2020_EN_e3f1cdd9df.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img src="../../../../../uploads/cover_en_a613654089.jpeg" width="600" height="852" /></a>