Qihoo founder Zhou Hongyi and other investors have offered Chinese Internet security firm Qihoo 360 to take the NYSE-listed company private as part of a possible plan to relist back in China, as announced on June 17, Wednesday.
The Xinhua News Agency reported that Zhou, together with China Renaissance, CITIC Securities, and Sequoia Capital, has reportedly offered to purchase Qihoo 360's outstanding shares at $51.33, or 77 per American Depository Share (ADS).
The company's founder Zhou said in an internal email on June 17, Wednesday, that he offered to take Qihoo 360 private after "repeatedly reviewing the circumstances of overseas and China's capital markets."
The Internet firm's share went public in the New York Stock Exchange in 2011, and climbed nearly 6 percent on June 17 to $71.84 and is valued at $8.9 billion.
According to Zhou, the company's current 8-billion-dollar market capitalization is not fully priced, considering Qihoo 360's leading position in China's Internet market.
Qihoo 360 is the latest Chinese firm listed overseas that has shown interest to get relisted back in China, where a stock rally is ongoing and IPO reforms have attracted firms toward the domestic stock market.
Shares of Beijing Baofeng Technologies, another technology company, have risen to the daily limit of 10 percent for 28 days straight after its initial public offering (IPO) in the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in March. The firm had previously planned to go public in the United States.
The State Council, China's cabinet, said on June 16, Tuesday, that it is looking for ways to help the country's Internet and tech startups to list in stock exchanges in Shenzhen and Shanghai. It is thinking of creating a new board at the Shanghai bourse for companies in the emerging industries.