CP completes $9.5bn acquisition

Charoen Pokphand Group today completed the acquisition of the 15 per cent stake in Ping An Insurance, despite earlier fears that the deal may not win the regulatory approval from the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC).

CP Group said in a statement that its four wholly-owned subsidiaries won the approval from the CIRC to purchase the stake from HSBC Insurance Holdings and Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corp. The shares are worth US$9.5 billion.

"In accordance with the terms of the transaction sale and purchase agreement, the Charoen Pokphand Group has made the payment for the full purchase price to HSBC," the Thai agribusiness conglomerate said.

Earlier, there were reports that CP involved itself with a Hong Kong tycoon, who may have financed the deal with illegal money.