(Yicai Global) June 2 -- Shares of Value Partners Group surged after it said Chinese mainland brokerage GF Securities will invest as much as CNY1 billion (USD141 million) for a 20.2 percent stake in the Hong Kong-based boutique asset manager.

Value Partners [HKG: 0806] finished 6.8 percent higher at HKD2.50 (35 US cents) a share in Hong Kong today, after earlier surging by as much as 12.8 percent.

GF Securities will purchase up to 369 million shares of Value Partners for HKD3 apiece from its founder Xie Qinghai, his firm Cheah Capital Management, and individual shareholder Ye Weiyi, the Hong Kong-based company said in a statement yesterday.

As of the end of last year, Xie was Value Partners’ largest shareholder with a 25.5 percent stake, and Ye was its second largest with 16.4 percent. Haitong Securities, another Chinese broker, indirectly holds 10.3 percent of Value Partners’ shares.

After the transaction is completed, GF Securities will become Value Partners’ No. 1 shareholder.

Founded in 1993, Value Partners is mainly engaged in the asset management business, with wholly-owned unit with financial business licenses in Malaysia, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. Value Partners had USD6.1 billion of assets under management as of last December.

Shares of GF Securities [HKG 1776] fell 0.4 percent to HKD10.90 (USD1.54) each today.

Editor: Futura Costaglione