News

Yum! secures China investment

8 Sep 2016

Fast food operator Yum! Brands, whose brands include KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, has entered into agreements to invest a total of $460 million in Yum China, concurrent with the completion of Yum China’s spinoff from Yum! Brands.

Fast food operator Yum! Brands, whose brands include KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, has entered into agreements with Primavera Capital Group, a China-based global private equity firm, and Ant Financial Services Group, an online and mobile financial services provider that operates the widely used Alipay mobile payments platform, to invest a total of $460 million in Yum China, concurrent with the completion of Yum China’s spinoff from Yum! Brands.

The spinoff and concurrent completion of the Primavera and Ant Financial investments are expected to occur on October 31, 2016, with Yum China to commence trading on the New York Stock Exchange as an independent company on November 1, 2016.

The company also announced that founder of Primavera Dr. Fred Hu, former Chairman of Greater China at Goldman Sachs, will become Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Yum China.

“We have long admired the Yum China business and are looking forward to collaborating with the Board and management to realize the company’s full potential,” said Dr. Hu of Primavera. “Yum China is an established leader in the retail and restaurant industry which we believe is poised for continued strong growth and unit expansion as cities across China invest in new transportation hubs, shopping malls and other physical and electronic infrastructure that will support consumption. I look forward to leading the Board of Directors of Yum China in its new and exciting chapter as an independent company.”

“Through this collaboration, we aim to help Yum China provide world-class mobile payment services for tens of millions of customers across its brands. These services include hassle-free Alipay for customers to help shorten queues at the cashier as well as membership solutions for Yum China designed to help manage their customer relations and promotions,” said Eric Jing, President of Ant Financial Services Group. “Leveraging our Big Data capabilities, KFC and Pizza Hut witnessed promising marketing results through their promotion on multiple Ant Financial platforms. We look forward to further collaborating with Yum China in the future.”

“Primavera and Ant Financial both have deep insights into the rapid urbanization and digital transformation which is driving the evolution of China’s economy, and we are excited about their investment into Yum China,” said Micky Pant, Chief Executive Officer of Yum China. “The investment is a clear endorsement of our business strategy and growth potential, and their diverse experience and relationships will be extremely beneficial. Dr. Hu’s extensive market insights and experience scaling businesses in China will be invaluable as we move to expand the footprint of our brands. In addition, Yum China is already the leading restaurant company for cashless payment systems in China, and we expect Ant Financial can provide further unique insights to help us better connect with consumers through mobile technology.”

“The investments from Primavera and Ant Financial in Yum China mark another important milestone in our plans to separate the China business and create a solid foundation for Yum China as it prepares to become an independent restaurant powerhouse,” said Greg Creed, Chief Executive Officer of Yum! Brands. “We look forward to partnering with Primavera and Ant Financial to drive long-term growth at Yum China and welcome Dr. Hu as Non-Executive Chairman of Yum China. I’m pleased that the spinoff remains on track for completion on October 31 and look forward to sharing additional details on the transformative initiatives we are undertaking as we become a more heavily franchised company at our New York investor conference on Tuesday, October 11.”