(18 September 2018, Hong Kong) China New Higher Education Group Limited (“New Higher Education Group”, together with its subsidiaries, the “Group”; stock code: 2001.HK) is pleased to announce that Beijing Daai Consulting entered into an equity transfer and capital increase agreement with Greenwoods Jia Xin Rui Xuan, Mr. Li Jianchun, Songming Zhonghe and Songming Xinju, pursuant to which the parties conditionally agreed (1) the increase in the equity interest of Songming Xinju held by Beijing Daai Consulting from 45% to 51% and (2) the acquisition by Greenwoods Jia Xin Rui Xuan of 39% equity interest in Songming Xinju. Songming Xinju wholly owns the sponsor of Guangxi Yinghua International Occupation College (Guangxi Schools).
Guangxi Schools cover undergraduate education in various disciplines such as economics and management, information technology, construction engineering, humanities and arts. Due to their good teaching quality, the promotion plan of the schools has been included in the “13th Five-Year Plan” for universities in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and has been filed with the MOE. In future, Guangxi Schools will be permitted to offer undergraduate level education.
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region currently has relatively lower student enrollment rate than other provinces in the PRC. The Beibu Gulf Economic Zone, in which Gaungxi Schools are located, is a strategic development zone in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region under the “Belt and Road” Initiative possessing the regional advantage of covering ASEAN and the fastest growing region in Guangxi. However, there are only a few universities in the region, and the higher education services supplied fall short of demand. Accordingly, Guangxi Schools has good potential to enlarge their scale.
Previously, the Group operated and invested in six higher education institutions in the PRC, including Yunnan School and Guizhou School founded by the Group, and Northeast School, Central China School, Xinjiang School and Henan School invested by the Group, which all contributed to the consolidated revenue of the Group. In addition, the Group became the joint school sponsor of Gansu College in July 2018. New Higher Education Group had 84,497 enrolled students for the 2017/2018 academic year, an increase of 81.9% compared with 46,460 students during the 2016/2017 academic year.
Mr. Li Xiaoxuan, the Chairman of the board of directors of New Higher Education Group said, “The acquisition of Guangxi Schools will consolidate the Group’s position as a market leader in China’s private higher education industry with the most extensive school coverage, enabling the Group to acquire a larger foothold in the market and to deepen market penetration. Moving forward, placing equal emphasis on internal and external growths, the Group will aim to expand its school network and penetration and leverage its advantages in order to open up more rooms for development.”
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About China New Higher Education Group Limited:
China New Higher Education Group is a leading private higher education group in the PRC with nearly 20 years of experience in the education sector, dedicated to providing higher education focusing on applied sciences. The group endeavors to help each student maximize his or her potential and live his or her life to the fullest. The group’s fundamental educational philosophy is mainly composed of two integral parts: (i) to nurture the growth of our students, and provide tailor-made education to each student’s individual needs and circumstances; and (ii) to equip our students with practical and readily applicable skills that meet market demand. During the six months ended 30 June 2018, the group operated and invested in six higher education institutions in the PRC, including Yunnan School and Guizhou School founded by the group, and Northeast School, Central China School, Xinjiang School and Henan School invested by the group. Further, the group has become a joint school sponsor of Gansu College in July 2018, which marks the completion of its strategic expansion into 7 provinces across China. It is a leading private higher education group in the PRC in terms of employment rate in 2017 according to the CIC Report.
The group provides high quality higher education in a wide selection of fields in applied sciences to equip students with practical experience and readily applicable skills and prepare them for the job market. In addition, in terms of the number of students enrolled for the past three academic years, the group is one of the fastest-growing higher education group focusing on applied sciences. The total number of students enrolled increased to 84,497 in the 2017/2018 academic year from 46,460 in the 2016/2017 academic year. The Group has been included as a constituent stock of the Hang Seng Composite Small Cap Index and the Hang Seng Consumer Goods & Services Index in the Hang Seng Composite Index Series in August 2017, has been included as a constituent stock of the MSCI China Small Cap Index in November 2017, and has been included as a constituent of certain indexes of Hang Seng Stock Connect Hong Kong in March 2018.
