Citic sells McDonald's stake for US$430m

Reuters and staff reporter

China's state-owned Citic (0267) has agreed to sell its 19.23 percent stake in Fast Food Holdings, the company behind McDonald's China and Hong Kong operations, to a unit of Chinese private equity firm Trustar Fast Food Holdings for US$430.3 million (HK$3.36 billion).

Fast Food Holdings owns 52 percent of the holding company managing McDonald's businesses in mainland China and Hong Kong.

The total divestment comes four years after a unit of Citic had put up for sale a stake it held in Fast Food Holding, intending to raise about US$312 million.

In 2017, McDonald's sold a majority stake in its China and Hong Kong operations to Citic and its investment arm Citic Capital - now known as Trustar and Carlyle - in a deal valued at US$2.1 billion at the time.

McDonald's in 2023 increased its stake in the Chinese business to 48 percent by buying Carlyle's 28 percent share, valuing the stake at US$6 billion.