Chinese movie studio Polybona eyes NYSE listing next year

Nov. 5, 2009 (China Knowledge) - Beijing Polybona Film Distribution Co, the third-largest movie studio in China, plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange in the second half of next year or the first half of 2011, a company executive said on Tuesday, the China Daily reported.

Polybona's CEO Yu Dong said the entertainment stocks are common in the U.S., and he wants investors in America and other foreign countries to invest in his company, according to the English-language newspaper.

Two U.S.-based venture firms, Sequoia Capital and Matrix Partners, agreed to invest in the Chinese company in the Series B fundraising earlier this year.

Polybona will start working on its listing application early next year, said Yu.

China's entertainment companies are turning to the capital markets to raise funds. Huayi Brothers Media Co Ltd<300027>, the largest private-owned movie studio in China, last Friday debuted on the ChiNext Board on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and its shares rose 147.76% above the IPO price on its first day of trading. China Film Group Corp, the largest and most influential state-run film enterprise in China, also plans to launch an IPO in Shanghai.

Founded in 1999, PolyBona was one of the first private companies to be granted a distribution license by the China Film Bureau. The company currently holds a 20% share of the domestic movie distribution market.