Baidu Announces Proposed $2 Bln Offering Of Exchangeable Bonds

(RTTNews) - Beijing-based online marketing and cloud services internet platform, Baidu, Inc. (BIDU) announced on Friday that it plans to offer up to $2 billion in aggregate principal amount of exchangeable bonds in offshore transactions outside the United States to non-U.S. persons. The bonds are due in 2032.

The company plans to use the net proceeds from this bond offering to repay certain existing indebtedness, payment of interest, and general corporate purposes.

Baidu said that the bonds will reference the ordinary shares of Trip.com Group Ltd., which are listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Subject to certain conditions, Baidu may offer the Trip.com shares held by the Company in lieu of cash or a combination of cash and Trip.com Shares.

The company added that the Bonds cannot be exchanged for the American Depositary Shares of Trip.com Group Ltd.