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Tencent-backed Keep Inc, China’s largest online fitness company, renews Hong Kong IPO application

  • The poor market sentiment has forced many companies to put their IPO plans on hold
  • Keep initially wanted to list in the US last year but decided on Hong Kong because of the tense relationship between Beijing and Washington, market sources said

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Keep is the largest online fitness platform in China with 37.7 million monthly active users as of June. Photo: SCMP

China’s most popular fitness app Keep Inc has renewed its listing application in Hong Kong after letting the first one lapse last month.

The company, which is backed by SoftBank’s Vision Fund and Tencent Holdings, had filed a listing application in February, but it did not proceed further during the six- month window that ended in August.
The poor market sentiment has led many new listing candidates to defer their initial public offering (IPO) plans, pushing Hong Kong to 10th place on the global IPO ranking list in the first half amid a 92.5 per cent slump in funds raised, according to Refinitiv.

Keep initially wanted to list in the US last year but shifted to Hong Kong because of the strained ties between Beijing and Washington, market sources said.

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Man works out with suitcase on train in China

Man works out with suitcase on train in China
Keep is the largest online fitness platform in China with 37.7 million monthly active users as of June, compared with 34.4 million at the end of 2021, according to a report from market consultancy CIC.

The company founded in 2014 by Wang Ning is among the businesses that have benefited from the pandemic as people were forced to work out at home.

Enoch Yiu
Enoch joined the Post as a business reporter in 1996. Before that, she worked at a Chinese daily newspaper for four years. She is the author of two books: 'They Mean Business: 50 exclusive interviews with Hong Kong top executives' and 'Serving with Passion: stories of established catering brands in Hong Kong'.
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