The IPO of one of the mainland's largest property insurers, The People's Insurance Company of China, which is currently undergoing bookbuilding as it seeks to raise up to US$3.6 billion, is setting a bit of a record with no less than 17 bookrunners - or senior underwriters - assigned to gather orders from institutional investors.
This is no doubt due, in part, to an understandable need to reassure its board and shareholders that no stone has been left unturned to generate demand. It is also reflective of how well some houses market their capabilities.
When it comes to making a hard sell, investment banks are the cream of the crop - and expert at discarding subtlety.
Here follows an appetiser of what prospective issuers can expect to be subjected to.
