Zijin Mining Group Co. has raised $1.5 billion from the sale of bonds that can be converted into stock as the price of gold hits record highs.
The Chinese miner offered convertible bonds due 2031 at zero coupon, according to a stock-exchange filing on Friday. Zijin Mining plans to use proceeds to fund capital expenditure related to the construction of the La Arena gold mine project in Peru, as well as working capital and other general corporate purposes.
The company set an initial conversion price of HK$63.30 a share, representing a premium of about 37% over the last closing price of HK$46.14. Zijin Mining initially marketed the instruments at a conversion-premium range of 35% to 40% above the price of a concurrent delta placement, according to terms of the deal seen by Bloomberg News. Banks typically propose such a placement in convertible-bond deals to facilitate hedging by investors.
Zijin Mining is coming off a flurry of deals as heightened geopolitical tensions and worries about the Federal Reserve’s independence fuel a rally in precious metals. Subsidiary Zijin Gold International Co. this week agreed to buy Canada-based Allied Gold Corp., which owns mines in Africa, for C$5.5 billion ($4 billion). Zijin Gold International went public in Hong Kong last year in an initial public offering that raised $3.7 billion.
Chinese miners have been active in fundraising this month. Copper producer CMOC Group Ltd. last week raised $1.2 billion from the sale of convertible bonds. Jiangxi Copper Co. is also planning to raise as much as $3.6 billion from its bond issuance.
The deals by Zijin Mining, CMOC and Jiangxi Copper represent about 40% of the $15.6 billion in bond proceeds raised by Chinese companies in the metals and mining sector in 2025, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Last year’s proceeds were the highest annual total since 2022.
Zijin Mining’s convertible bond involves a lockup of 90 days for the company. Bondholders will have the right to require Zijin Mining to redeem the bonds on Feb. 5, 2029, the company said.
UBS Group AG and Citic Securities Co. are joint bookrunners of the offering.
(By Dave Sebastian)