Dongpeng Beverage's HK IPO: Luxury cornerstone endorsement, the Oriental Roc spreads its wings globally
Dongpeng Beverage's Hong Kong IPO: Star-studded cornerstone investors back the Oriental Roc soaring globally
For a long time, the global functional beverage market has been dominated by a handful of international brands. However, this entrenched landscape is quietly changing as China's consumer market matures, domestic supply chain capabilities continuously evolve, and local brands achieve breakthroughs in scale and efficiency. Dongpeng Beverage, a national beverage brand, has emerged as the most representative disruptor in this transformation.
After over three decades of preparation, Dongpeng Beverage has reached a critical milestone. On January 26, Dongpeng Beverage (9980.HK) officially launched its Hong Kong IPO, planning to issue 40,889,900 H shares globally at HK$248 per share (100 shares per lot), with expected listing on February 3, achieving dual primary listing in A+H shares.
Notably, this Hong Kong IPO features an exceptionally strong lineup of cornerstone investors including Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Temasek, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, UBS Asset Management, BlackRock, Fidelity, Orchid Asia, Pinpoint, Kerry Group, and Pacific Century Group, among 15 top global institutions collectively subscribing to approximately $640 million worth of shares - setting a record for the largest number of cornerstone investors in a Hong Kong consumer sector IPO, demonstrating international capital's recognition of China's functional beverage market and Dongpeng's growth potential.
From being China's top-selling functional beverage brand for four consecutive years to becoming a comprehensive beverage group with global ambitions, Dongpeng Beverage leverages its deep industry expertise, strong product innovation capabilities, and digitalized operations to propel this Oriental Roc onto the world stage.
Global Expansion: The Roc's Wings Have Spread
Dongpeng Beverage's story epitomizes the rise of Chinese consumer brands.
Its growth trajectory mirrors China's economic boom and consumption upgrade. From establishing pricing advantages through PET bottle packaging that precisely matched target consumers' preferences, to resonating with a generation of strivers through its "Stay Awake, Keep Fighting" slogan, Dongpeng Special Drink has over three decades embedded itself into Chinese consumers' daily lives and psyche. Today, Dongpeng boasts over 4.3 million retail outlets nationwide, maintaining its position as China's top-selling functional beverage from 2021 to 2024 with growing market share.
After consolidating its domestic position, Dongpeng has turned overseas, successfully entering multiple markets including Vietnam and Malaysia through precise understanding of local demand. The company has established subsidiaries in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia for localized operations. By November 2025, Dongpeng products had reached 30 countries and regions.
The Hong Kong listing will be a key accelerator for Dongpeng's globalization strategy. Leveraging Hong Kong's international financial platform, the company will further invest in overseas supply chain development, channel expansion and brand promotion, implementing its "local team + local channels + local supply chain" strategy to tap Southeast Asia's potential while exploring opportunities in markets like the U.S., replicating China's successful product development, supply chain management and digital operation models globally. As the functional beverage market landscape reshapes, Dongpeng is steadily transforming from a national brand into a global one.
Beyond Energy: A Beverage Multiverse
To many, Dongpeng equals "Dongpeng Special Drink." But the company has long outgrown this single energy drink label. Strategically focusing on beverages with long lifecycles and strong market potential, Dongpeng has built a diversified product matrix and growth engines addressing varied consumption scenarios and demographics.
Its flagship product "Dongpeng Special Drink" remains the cornerstone, generating RMB13.3 billion revenue in 2024 with 27.3% CAGR from 2022-2024. Its "Tired? Sleepy? Drink Dongpeng Special Drink" proposition has become deeply ingrained, making it a RMB10 billion+ national benchmark product.
In sports drinks, "Dongpeng Rehydrate" achieved nearly RMB1.5 billion revenue in its second year with 280.4% YoY growth by emphasizing rapid electrolyte replenishment. It maintained strong 134.8% YoY growth to RMB2.85 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, becoming another growth driver. Additionally, "Dongpeng Coffee" caters to workplace and leisure scenarios, "Island Coconut" plant-based protein drink targets foodservice channels, and "Fruit Tea" series addresses low-sugar tea demand, with other beverage products growing 103.2% YoY in 2024.
Dongpeng now offers a complete portfolio covering energy drinks, sports drinks, tea beverages, coffee drinks, plant-based protein drinks and fruit/vegetable juices, extending consumption scenarios from energy replenishment to daily hydration, food pairing and leisure. This "solid core with diversified expansion" ecosystem meets diverse consumer needs while reducing reliance on any single category, providing sustainable growth momentum.
Strong Growth + Favorable Industry Fundamentals Underpin Future
Financially, Dongpeng demonstrates exceptional growth resilience and profitability. Revenue grew from RMB8.5 billion in 2022 to RMB15.83 billion in 2024 (36.5% CAGR), reaching RMB16.84 billion in the first three quarters of 2025 (34.1% YoY growth).
Profitability is even more impressive, with net profit surging from RMB1.44 billion in 2022 to RMB3.33 billion in 2024 (52.0% CAGR), and further to RMB3.76 billion in the first three quarters of 2025 (38.9% YoY growth). Net margin improved steadily from 16.9% in 2022 to 22.3% in the first three quarters of 2025, reflecting both scale effects and operational efficiency gains.
Notably, Dongpeng prioritizes shareholder returns, having distributed RMB5.4 billion in dividends since its 2021 A-share listing with a cumulative payout ratio around 60%, demonstrating financial strength and long-term commitment.
Industry-wise, China's functional beverage market offers ample growth potential. Frost & Sullivan projects the market will reach RMB281 billion by 2029, with 10.9% CAGR from 2025-2029 (versus 5.8% for soft drinks overall), including 12.2% CAGR for sports drinks.
As industry leader with leading market share and strong brand power, Dongpeng is ideally positioned in a "wide runway with deep moat." It stands to benefit not only from market expansion but also from continued market share gains through product innovation and channel refinement, achieving alpha growth beyond industry trends.
From Guangdong to nationwide leadership, from local brand to global player, Dongpeng's Hong Kong listing marks not just a corporate milestone but a significant step for Chinese beverage brands going global. Moving forward, with dual A+H listing advantages, multi-category synergies and favorable industry prospects, Dongpeng's growth trajectory will extend further.
When the Oriental Roc spreads its wings, they resemble clouds spanning the sky. Its future lies in becoming a bright spot in Chinese consumer brands' globalization wave, and a solid landmark in the vast global business landscape worthy of long-term attention.
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